Treatment Options

Sarcomas are rare, making up only about 1 percent of all cancer cases annually in the United States. But, they can be difficult to diagnose. The best place to go for diagnosis and treatment of these rare cancers is an academic medical center such as SCCA, where our doctors provide the most up-to-date treatments.

"We see people who are diagnostic challenges," says Dr. Ernest Conrad, medical oncologist at UW Medical Center and director of SCCA's Sarcoma Service. "Sarcomas are the one tumor that'll make a fool out of a doctor because it's very difficult to distinguish the benign from the malignant. In addition, sarcoma has very subtle symptoms, typically just a mass but no pain."

About one-half of the tumors seen by sarcoma physicians are malignant, or cancerous, Dr. Conrad says. The treatment you will receive for sarcoma depends on what type of sarcoma you have and whether you are at adult or a child.

Doctors at SCCA see about 100 new adult patients a year with bone cancers and about 400 new adult patients with soft tissue sarcomas.

We offer our patients breakthrough treatments, including limb-sparing surgery, and neoadjuvant chemotherapy, which means chemotherapy treatment before surgery.

To learn more, go to:

• Bone Cancer Treatment Options
• Chemotherapy
• Neoadjuvent Chemotherapy
• Radiation Therapy
• Surgery

 

Patients who undergo surgery often require skin grafts or other life-saving services from the Northwest Tissue Center.

Sarcoma Registry
Dr. Conrad started a registry with the Northwest Tissue Center called Sarcobase which helps in the research efforts of this rare cancer. 

Follow-Up After Treatment As part of the Survivorship Program at SCCA, a clinic has been developed for general medical oncology survivors treated with conventional therapy. This clinic is the Medical Oncology Survivorship Team (MOST). For more information about the MOST program, click here.

August 2007