Why Choose Us for Soft-Tissue Sarcoma Treatment
At Huntsman Cancer Institute, you receive comprehensive, multidisciplinary care for soft-tissue sarcomas. Our Sarcoma Care Team provides personalized and compassionate care at every step, from evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment to long-term follow-up and survivorship.
We care for adults at Huntsman Cancer Institute and children at Primary Children’s Hospital through our integrated team of internationally recognized experts in sarcoma surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, radiology, and pathology. As the only Comprehensive Cancer Center designated by the National Cancer Institute in the Mountain West, we offer the latest evidence-based treatments, including access to groundbreaking soft-tissue sarcoma-specific clinical trials.
"The care I received from Dr. Kevin Jones and my care team means the world to me."
Gunner Stringham
Soft-Tissue Sarcoma Patient
Treatments We Offer
Our team of sarcoma experts collaborates closely to help you develop personalized treatment plans. Central to that collaborative care are our weekly multidisciplinary treatment planning conferences, where our entire team of sarcoma experts meets to work together on the best treatment plan for each patient.
We offer a comprehensive range of specialized treatments for soft-tissue sarcoma patients:
- Surgery: Surgery is often the primary treatment for localized sarcomas. Our surgical oncology team employs limb-sparing surgeries to remove tumors while preserving or rebuilding the affected limb's function. This approach is applicable in the vast majority of extremity sarcoma cases. For sarcomas in the chest or abdomen, or associated with organs, our surgeons employ similarly function-optimizing techniques.
- Radiation therapy: Radiation therapy is used most frequently before surgery or after surgery for soft-tissue sarcomas to eliminate cancer cells that have invaded surrounding tissues. In other circumstances, radiation therapy is used as the principal treatment of sarcomas that are not removable with surgery. We utilize advanced radiation techniques, including proton therapy, to deliver precise radiation doses to tumors while minimizing damage to surrounding healthy tissues.
- Chemotherapy: Traditional chemotherapies are used for some specific soft-tissue sarcomas. Other systemic treatments (applied in pill or infusion form) are also used to avoid some of the known unpleasant side effects of traditional chemotherapies.
- Clinical trials: We operate the only Phase 1 clinical cancer research program in the region, offering more than 400 open clinical trials to patients. These trials provide access to cutting-edge therapies and investigational treatments, contributing to advancements in sarcoma care. We have a number of sarcoma-specific clinical trials open at any given time.
Our Expertise
We are at the forefront of sarcoma treatment, with expertise in the following:
- Multidisciplinary care for all types of soft-tissue sarcomas
- Coordinated care across specialties and geographic regions
- Long-term follow-up and survivorship support
- Access to soft-tissue sarcoma clinical trials
Supportive care services are available for every patient and patient’s family member. You are supported by a team of providers, nurses, medical assistants, social workers, and counselors.
We can also coordinate care for patients from a long distance, working with local providers and arranging the vast supportive care resources of the Hope Lodge and Ronald McDonald House for patients needing to relocate temporarily to Salt Lake City. We connect teenagers and young adult patients to a host of supportive services available through the Huntsman-Intermountain Adolescent and Young Adult (HIAYA) Cancer Care Program.
Patient Care Philosophy
We believe no one should face cancer alone. Our dedicated and world-renowned doctors, nurses, and medical staff are at the forefront of patient-centered care. We treat the whole person, not just their cancer.
Each day, our medical, surgical, and radiation oncologists work together across disciplines to create and coordinate treatment plans for every patient. We understand cancer is a complex disease. That is why we use a team approach that includes social workers and support groups, as well as wellness and integrative health services such as acupuncture, massage, creative arts, and more.
Find a Soft-Tissue Sarcoma Doctor
Soft-Tissue Sarcoma Research
Huntsman Cancer Institute is a leader in sarcoma research, focusing on understanding the genetic and molecular mechanisms underlying different sarcoma types.
Through our specialty Sarcoma Disease Center, we bring together doctors and scientists who work side by side to turn scientific discoveries into better outcomes for you. Our researchers have developed genetically engineered models for various soft-tissue sarcomas, such as alveolar soft part sarcoma, clear cell sarcoma, and synovial sarcoma. These models are instrumental in testing and improving cancer treatments, as well as in conducting basic research to understand the mechanisms and genetic basis of sarcoma development.
Clinical Trials
Make an Appointment with a Soft-Tissue Sarcoma Specialist
To make an appointment with a soft-tissue sarcoma specialist, fill out our appointment form or call 801-587-7000. Our team will determine if your insurance covers treatment at Huntsman Cancer Institute or if you need a referral from a primary care doctor.
External providers can refer a patient using the online referral form or by calling 801-587-7000 to speak to a patient registration specialist.
Soft-Tissue Sarcoma Basics
Soft-tissue sarcomas are cancers that develop in the body's connective tissues, such as muscles, fat, nerves, tendons, and blood vessels.
There are numerous types of soft-tissue sarcomas. Here are some of the soft-tissue sarcomas we diagnose and treat:
- Pleiomorphic sarcomas: Undifferentiated pleiomorphic sarcoma, leiomyosarcoma, myxofibrosarcoma, malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors, pleiomorphic liposarcoma, and rhabdomyosarcoma
- Translocation-associated sarcomas: Synovial sarcoma, myxoid liposarcoma, alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma, alveolar soft part sarcoma, clear cell sarcoma, desmoplastic round cell sarcoma, and extra-skeletal myxoid chondrosarcoma
- Soft-tissue sarcomas of specific organ tissues and anatomy: Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST), retroperitoneal well-differentiated and dedifferentiated liposarcomas, and skin sarcomas (Kaposi sarcoma and dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans)
People usually first notice a painless lump, bump, or swelling in an arm or leg that lasts longer than 2 weeks. Sometimes there is pain from the lump pushing on nerves or stretching muscles.
It is important for specialized sarcoma doctors such as our team to evaluate lumps and bumps that could be sarcomas.
Anything that increases your chance of getting a disease is called a risk factor. Having a risk factor does not mean you are sure to get cancer. It means your chances are higher than the average person’s. Talk with your doctor to learn more about your cancer risk.
These are some risk factors for soft-tissue sarcomas:
- Family history of any of the following:
- Sarcoma
- Retinoblastoma
- Neurofibromatosis type 1
- Tuberous sclerosis
- Familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP)
- Li-Fraumeni syndrome
- Werner syndrome
- Nevoid basal cell carcinoma syndrome
- Previous radiation treatment
- Previous exposure to radiation
- Exposure to specific chemicals such as Thorotrast, vinyl chloride, or arsenic
- Swelling in the arms and legs (lymphedema) for a long period of time
Understand your risk. Schedule a genetic counseling session today.
Doctors may use these tests to diagnose soft-tissue sarcoma:
- Imaging: Your care team takes special images such as X-rays, CT scans, and MRI to look at the suspected sarcoma.
- Biopsy: Your care team removes cell or tissue samples to look at them under a microscope and check for signs of cancer.
When a person is diagnosed with cancer, concerns about treatments and side effects, hospital stays, and medical bills are common. Huntsman Cancer Institute offers many ways to support patients, caregivers, and loved ones.
Cancer stages show whether cancer has spread within the soft tissue or to other parts of the body. Cancer spreads in the body in three ways: through tissue, the lymph system, or the blood. Sarcoma usually spreads by growing into nearby tissues or through the blood to the lungs.
These are the general stages used for soft-tissue sarcoma:
- Localized: The cancer has not grown beyond its beginning position.
- Regionally advanced: The sarcoma has grown large enough to invade surrounding tissues or spread to nearby lymph nodes. This happens only in a few types of sarcoma.
- Metastatic: The sarcoma has spread to a distant part of the body, usually the lungs.
When cancer spreads from where it started to another part of the body, it is called metastasis. These metastatic cancer cells are the same type of cancer as the primary tumor. For example, if soft-tissue sarcoma spreads to the lung, the cancer cells in the lung are actually soft-tissue sarcoma cells. The disease is metastatic soft-tissue sarcoma, not lung cancer.
Need help navigating your care? The Cancer Learning Center is here to support you with personalized guidance, resources, and answers to your questions.
