Sarcoma is a cancer of connective tissue, or the manifestation of malignant (cancerous) tumors through irregular cellular division in the bones or the soft tissue that may metastasize (or spread) to other parts of the body.  Connective tissue consists of bone, fat, muscle, fibrous tissue surrounding joints, cartilage, nerve, blood vessels or deep skin tissue. They can occur anywhere in the body and the location of the tumor is an important variable that greatly influences treatment and outcome. 

 

Types of Sarcoma:

Soft tissue Sarcoma:  Soft tissue sarcomas are the most frequently occurring sarcomas and are a group composed of more than 50 different subtypes.  All these subtypes differ in terms of their tissue of origin, clinical behavior, age of occurrence, aggressiveness, the way they spread, genetic alterations, and their sensitivity to certain therapies.  This group of sarcomas comprises only 1.6% of all malignant tumors diagnosed country-wide, representing between 6,000 and 8,000 new cases per year.  Click here to view a glossary of terms for Soft tissue sarcoma subtypes.

 

Sarcoma of the bone: Tumors under this category are very rare and account for only 0.2% of all cancers in the country, and it was approximated by ACD that 4,700 new cases in the United States were diagnosed in 2007. Click here to view glossary of terms for Bone Sarcoma subtypes.

 

Overall Incidence: The American Cancer Society predicts over 10,000 cases of sarcoma will be diagnosed in 2008.  Sarcomas are more common among children, accounting for 15% of pediatric cancers, but become less frequent with increasing age, accounting for approximately only 1% of all adult cancers.  It is the most common solid tumor found in young adults today. More key statistics.