add site
services
publishers
database
health videos
toolbar
stats
live show
health store
more stuff
JOIN/LOGIN
| advertise add site services publishers database health videos
| | about toolbar stats live show health store more stuff JOIN/LOGIN |
Proton therapy for sarcoma and soft tissue sarcoma chondrosarcoma,... floridaproton.org | Review of National Sarcoma Surgical Services and the Scottish Sarcoma... pathologyscotland.org | Kaposis Sarcoma - symptom, Treatment of Kaposis Sarcoma diseases-condition.com |
A sarcoma (from the Greek 'sarx' meaning "flesh") is a cancer of the connective tissue[1] (bone, cartilage, fat) resulting in mesoderm proliferation.[2] This is in contrast to carcinomas, which are of epithelial origin (breast, colon, pancreas, and others). However, due to an evolving understanding of tissue origin, the term "sarcoma" is sometimes applied to tumors now known to arise from epithelial tissue.[3] The term soft tissue sarcoma is used to describe tumors of soft tissue,[4] which includes elements that are in connective tissue, but not derived from it (such as muscles and blood vessels).
[edit] Classification[edit] TissueSarcomas are given a number of different names, based on the type of tissue from which they arise. For example, osteosarcoma arises from bone, chondrosarcoma arises from cartilage, and leiomyosarcoma arises from smooth muscle. [edit] GradeIn addition to being named based on the tissue of origin, sarcomas are also assigned a grade, such as low grade or high grade. Low grade sarcomas are usually treated surgically, although sometimes radiation therapy or chemotherapy are used. High grade sarcomas are more frequently treated with a combination of surgery, chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy.[5] Since high grade tumors are more likely to undergo metastasis (spreading to distant sites), they are treated more aggressively. The recognition that many sarcomas are sensitive to chemotherapy has dramatically improved the survival of patients. For example, in the era before chemotherapy, long term survival for patients with localized osteosarcoma was only approximately 20%, but now has risen to 60-70%.[6] [edit] Types of sarcoma(ICD-O codes are provided where available.)
[edit] EpidemiologySarcomas are rare, with only 15,000 new cases per year in the United States.[7] Sarcomas therefore represent about one percent of the 1.5 million new cancer diagnoses in this country each year,[8] and are well below the US's orphan disease threshold of 200,000 cases per year. Gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) is the most common form of sarcoma, with approximately 3,000-3,500 cases per year in the United States.[9] Sarcomas affect people of all ages. Approximately 50% of bone sarcomas and 20% of soft tissue sarcomas are diagnosed in people under the age of 35.[10] Some sarcomas, such as leiomyosarcoma, chondrosarcoma, and gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST), are more common in adults than in children. Most high-grade bone sarcomas, including Ewing's sarcoma and osteosarcoma, are much more common in children and young adults. [edit] References
[edit] External links
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ↑ top of page ↑ | about thumbshots |
