Soft tissue sarcoma

A soft tissue sarcoma is a tumour that develops in the body’s soft tissues such as fat, muscle, cartilage and blood vessels. These tissues protect the body, help it move or join it together.

There are many different types of soft tissue sarcoma, some of the most common in children and young people are:

Rhabdomyosarcomas which develop in the muscle, mostly in the neck, head bladder and testes. These account for about half of all soft tissue sarcomas.

Synovial sarcomas which most commonly develop near joints

Fibrosarcomas which develop in the body’s connective tissue such as the tendons and ligaments.

This information is about soft tissue sarcomas in general. For specific information about a condition parents can contact their childs Consultant.

Rhabdomyosarcoma, the most common soft tissue sarcoma, is found mainly in boys under 10 years old.

The symptoms of soft tissue sarcomas will depend upon where the tumour has developed. The most common symptom is swelling or a lump at the site of the tumour.

Other symptoms include a discharge from the nose or throat (if the sarcoma is in the head or neck) or stomach pains or difficulty passing urine.

Soft tissue sarcomas are diagnosed with a biopsy, where a small part of the tumour is removed under a general anaesthetic. Other tests, such as a MRI Scan or chest X-ray will determine if, and how far the cancer has spread.

Treatment for soft tissue sarcoma depends on where the cancer is, how far it has spread (its stage) how fast it is growing (its grade) and in some cases, the child’s age.

The treatment will consist of a combination of surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy.

Surgery
The tumour will be removed by surgery if this is possible. Sometimes chemotherapy or radiotherapy will be given to shrink the tumour before surgery.

Chemotherapy and radiotherapy
These options are used when the tumour cannot be removed completely, or at all, by surgery. The aim is to reduce or remove the tumour using anti-cancer drugs or high dose radiation.

The side-effects associated with chemotherapy are tiredness, sickness and diarrhoea, temporary hair loss and infection, all of which can be managed with help from the child’s Consultant or nursing team.  For more information about side-effects please visit our side-effects section.

Long term side-effects
Some children may go on to develop longer term side effects. Please remember that all children are different and only a small number develop long-term problems as a result of their treatment. Parents can talk to their child’s Consultant if they are concerned about them and can visit our beyond treatment section for general information.

Follow-up care
All children will need to be monitored regularly at an outpatient's clinic. The Consultant will be looking for any signs that the cancer has returned (recurrent cancer) and checking the functions of major organs to make sure that they have not been affected by the cancer treatment.  top of page