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Updated: Aug 20, 2025
A Mouse Model of Incompletely Resected Soft Tissue Sarcoma for Testing Neoadjuvant Therapies
Published on: July 28, 2020
What's the latest with investigational drugs for soft tissue sarcoma?
Elena Cojocaru1,2, Andrea Napolitano2, Cyril Fisher3
1Cancer Genetic Unit, The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, 203 Fulham Road, SW3 6JJ, London, UK.
Introduction:
Despite extensive research undertaken in the past 20-30 years, the treatment for soft tissue sarcoma (STS) has remained largely the same, with anthracycline-based chemotherapy remaining the first choice for treating advanced or metastatic STS.
Areas Covered:
This review focuses on newly approved drugs for STS and current research directions, including recent results of late-phase trials in patients with STS. We cover several different histological subtypes, and we discuss the role of adoptive cell transfer (ACT) therapies for the treatment of synovial and myxoid/round cell (high-grade myxoid) liposarcoma, one of the most promising areas of treatment development to date. We searched clinicaltrials.gov and pubmed.ncbi.nih.gov, as well as recent year proceedings from the annual conferences of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO), and Connective Tissue Oncology Society (CTOS).
Expert Opinion:
Immune-oncology drugs (IOs) show promise in certain subtypes of STS, but it is recognized that PD-1/PD-L1 axis inhibition is not enough on its own. Better trial stratifications based on the molecular categorization of different subtypes of STS are needed, and more evidence suggests that 'one size fits all' treatment is no longer sustainable in this heterogeneous and aggressive group of tumors.
Insights
New treatments for soft tissue sarcoma (STS) are emerging, moving beyond traditional chemotherapy. Research highlights immune-oncology drugs and adoptive cell transfer therapies for specific STS subtypes.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Translational Research
- Drug Development
Background:
- Soft tissue sarcoma (STS) treatment has seen limited advancement over decades, with anthracycline-based chemotherapy remaining standard for advanced disease.
- The heterogeneity of STS necessitates personalized treatment strategies beyond current therapeutic options.
Approach:
- This review synthesizes recent findings on novel drugs and late-phase clinical trial results for various STS subtypes.
- We examine the potential of adoptive cell transfer (ACT) therapies, particularly for synovial and myxoid/round cell liposarcoma.
- Literature search included clinicaltrials.gov, PubMed, and major oncology conference proceedings (ASCO, ESMO, CTOS).
Key Points:
- Immune-oncology drugs (IOs) demonstrate promise in select STS subtypes, but PD-1/PD-L1 inhibition alone is insufficient.
- Molecular subtyping is crucial for effective trial stratification and treatment selection in STS.
- A 'one-size-fits-all' approach is inadequate for managing this diverse and aggressive group of cancers.
Conclusions:
- Novel therapeutic strategies, including IOs and ACT, are expanding treatment paradigms for STS.
- Future advancements depend on refined patient stratification based on molecular characteristics.
- Personalized medicine is essential for improving outcomes in soft tissue sarcoma.
