Brain metastases of sarcoma: a rare phenomenon in rare tumours

• Published in: Journal of cancer research and clinical oncology Vol. 149; no. 20; pp. 18271 - 18281
• Main Authors: Jędrys, Wiktoria, Leśniak, Aleksandra, Borkowska, Aneta, Rutkowski, Piotr, Sobczuk, Paweł
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01-12-2023; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Blood cancer; Bone cancer; Brain cancer; Brain research; Cancer Research; Cancer therapies; Chemotherapy; Coma; Epidemiology; Ewings sarcoma; Hematology; Histology; Internal Medicine; Life span; Liposarcoma; Lungs; Medical prognosis; Medical research; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Metastases; Metastasis; Oncology; Osteosarcoma; Patients; Pediatrics; Radiation therapy; Review; Tumors; Brain metastases; Sarcoma; Radiotherapy; Surgery
• ISSN: 0171-5216; 1432-1335
• DOI: 10.1007/s00432-023-05451-1

The usual site for distant metastases of sarcoma is lungs, while brain metastasis (BM) occurs much less frequently and usually late in the disease progression. Despite the advancement in cancer treatment, the outcome for patients with brain metastasis is poor, and their lifespan is short. The frequency of BM in sarcoma seems to be affected by the location and histology of the primary tumour. Sarcoma subtypes with a high propensity for brain metastasis are ASPS, leiomyosarcoma and osteosarcoma. There are no clear guidelines for the treatment of sarcoma brain metastasis. However, therapeutic options include surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy, and are often combined. Targeted therapies are a promising treatment option for sarcoma but require investigation in patients with BM. The following review presents the data on sarcoma brain metastasis incidence, treatment and prognosis.