What is a sarcoma?

With approximately 5,000 new cases per year in France, i.e. less than 2% of all cancers (1% in adults; 10% in children), sarcomas are rare cancers. They affect men as much as women, children as well as adults. These tumors are formed to the detriment of soft tissues (soft-tissue sarcomas) - dermis (dermatofibrosarcomas), adipose (liposarcomas), muscular (rhabdomyosarcomas, leiomyosarcomas), vascular (angiosarcomas), fibrous (fibrosarcomas), digestive (gastrointestinal stromal tumors - or bone (sarcoma of bones and cartilages), anywhere in the body (55% in the limbs, 45% in the deep regions of the trunk and abdomen and 5% in the head and neck). Thus, osteosarcomas tend to develop on the bones of the limbs, Ewing's sarcomas tend to develop on the pelvic and leg bones, or chondrosarcomas - from cartilage tissue.

A member of the NETSARC+ network, Institut Curie is a national expert center for the diagnostic assessment and therapeutic management of sarcomas. The iInstitute offers a dedicated diagnostic pathway (CUSTOM), which facilitates the management of patients.

Survival of people with cancer in metropolitan France 1989-2018 - Sarcoma (santepubliquefrance.fr)