Diagnosis
The only reliable way to determine whether a soft-tissue tumour is benign or malignant is through a biopsy. There are two methods for acquisition of tumour tissue for cytopathological analysis;
- Needle Aspiration, via biopsy needle
- surgically, via an incision made into the tumour.
A pathologist examines the tissue under a microscope. If cancer is present, the pathologist can usually determine the type of cancer and its grade. Here, 'grade' refers to a scale used to represent concisely the predicted growth rate of the tumour and its tendency to spread, and this is determined by the degree to which the cancer cells appear abnormal when examined under a microscope. Low-grade sarcomas, although cancerous, are defined as those that are less likely to metastasise. High-grade sarcomas are defined as those more likely to spread to other parts of the body.
Soft tissue sarcomas commonly originate in the upper body, in the shoulder or upper chest. Some symptoms are uneven posture, pain in the trapezius muscle and cervical inflexibility .
The most common site to which soft tissue sarcoma spreads is the lungs.
Read more about this topic: Soft-tissue Sarcoma