Current Role of Radiomics for Management of Soft Tissue Sarcoma

Soft tissue sarcomas represent a diverse set of malignancies with equally diverse behavior, ranging from relatively indolent low-grade tumors to aggressive high-grade tumors with high metastatic potential. Initial diagnosis hinges on tissue biopsy for determining histologic subtype and grade, while conventional imaging plays critical roles in defining local tumor size and extent, staging, treatment response, and disease surveillance. However, conventional semantic interpretation of imaging studies overlooks much of the complex imaging data embedded in routine clinical studies. Radiomics encompasses the identification of novel disease biomarkers extracted from highly quantitative characterizations of tumor structure and heterogeneity and has shown promise in providing a deeper understanding of soft tissue sarcomas. Given the increasing usage of imaging in soft tissue sarcomas, particularly usage of MRI, it behooves both clinicians and radiologists to further the depth of understanding that may be gleaned from radiomics. These insights, although primarily experimental, represent a rapidly evolving landscape in soft tissue sarcoma diagnosis and management where radiomics will be increasingly integrated into clinical practice. The present work focuses on the latest updates with regards to the application of radiomics to the diagnosis, prediction of treatment response, assessment of treatment response, and prognosis of soft tissue sarcomas and how they may affect sarcoma management.