Soft tissue sarcomas

Tissues that can be affected by soft tissue sarcomas include fat, muscle, blood vessels, deep skin tissues, tendons and ligaments.

Soft tissue sarcomas can develop in almost any part of the body, including the legs, arms and the trunk (torso).

There are many different types of soft tissue sarcoma, depending on where in the body they are located. For example:

leiomyosarcomas – which develop in muscle tissue liposarcomas – which develop in fat tissue angiosarcomas – which develop in the cells of the blood or lymph vessels gastrointestinal stromal tumours (GISTs) – which can develop in the connective tissues that support the organs of the digestive system

Soft tissue sarcomas account for around 1 in every 100 cancers diagnosed in the UK.


Soft tissue sarcomas can develop in almost any part of the body, including the legs, arms and the trunk (torso).

There are many different types of soft tissue sarcoma, depending on where in the body they are located. For example:

leiomyosarcomas – which develop in muscle tissue liposarcomas – which develop in fat tissue angiosarcomas – which develop in the cells of the blood or lymph vessels gastrointestinal stromal tumours (GISTs) – which can develop in the connective tissues that support the organs of the digestive system

Soft tissue sarcomas account for around 1 in every 100 cancers diagnosed in the UK.


There are many different types of soft tissue sarcoma, depending on where in the body they are located. For example:

leiomyosarcomas – which develop in muscle tissue liposarcomas – which develop in fat tissue angiosarcomas – which develop in the cells of the blood or lymph vessels gastrointestinal stromal tumours (GISTs) – which can develop in the connective tissues that support the organs of the digestive system

Soft tissue sarcomas account for around 1 in every 100 cancers diagnosed in the UK.

Symptoms

As soft tissue sarcomas can develop in most parts of the body, they can cause a wide range of symptoms.

For example, a tumour near the stomach may cause abdominal (tummy) pain, a feeling of fullness and constipation, whereas a tumour near the lungs may cause a cough or breathlessness.

There are often no obvious symptoms in the early stages of soft tissue sarcomas, although you may notice a soft, painless lump under your skin or deeper, that can’t easily be moved around and gets bigger over time.

You should speak to your GP if you have a worrying lump or any other troublesome symptoms. A lump the size of a golf ball or larger should be regarded as suspicious and needs to be investigated urgently.

Although it is much more likely you have a benign (non-cancerous) condition, it is important to get your symptoms checked out.