The challenges of sarcoma

The Challenges of Sarcoma

Soft tissue sarcomas (STS) constitute an uncommon and heterogeneous group of tumours of mesenchymal cell origin. STS can arise anywhere in the body and at any age. Although STS comprise more than 50 different histopathological subtypes, they share several clinicopathological features and are usually considered as a group for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes.

STS require a multidisciplinary and complex therapeutic approach, involving pathologists, radiologists, surgeons, and radiation and medical oncologists, and should preferably be treated at specialist centres.

The challenges facing clinicians is that the symptoms of benign and malignant STS often overlap and despite there being key prevalent warning signs, diagnosis can often be delayed by several months. Early recognition and referral to a specialist centre that provides a multidisciplinary diagnosis and therapeutic approach are important factors for improving the outcomes of patients with STS.

Another challenge is deciding the optimal drug sequences and treatment formats to use, as some tumour types are especially sensitive to certain drugs, so clear guidance is needed to understand these sequences and also which new and emerging therapies are available for STS patients.

We're delighted to produce an article series on the challenges of Sarcoma in collaboration with the Clinical Sarcoma Research journal, comprising of review articles written by leading global experts in the field, which we encourage you to read below.

1. Content Type:Review

   The challenge of sarcomas: the patient advocacy group perspective

   The patient advocacy agenda covers every aspect of cancer treatment and care. This inevitably means that this review covers almost everything that patient advocates are involved with, whether locally, national...

   Authors:Roger Wilson

   Citation:Clinical Sarcoma Research 2019 9:11

   Published on: 17 July 2019

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2. Content Type:Review

   The challenge of finding new therapeutic avenues in soft tissue sarcomas

   Soft tissue sarcomas are rare malignancies of mesenchymal origin comprising about 1% of all adult cancers. Systemic therapies for locally advanced and metastatic disease have been restricted for decades to ver...

   Authors:Bernd Kasper

   Citation:Clinical Sarcoma Research 2019 9:5

   Published on: 10 April 2019

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For other Sarcoma resources please visit: https://oncology.medicinematters.com/sarcoma-topic/12231724

Springer Healthcare IME

This article series is made possible thanks to independent educational sponsorship from Eli Lilly and Company.