Establishing biomarkers for soft tissue sarcomas.

Introduction: Soft tissue sarcomas (STS) are a rare and diverse group of tumors. Curative options are limited to localized disease, with surgery being the mainstay. Advanced stages are associated with a poor prognosis. Currently, the prognosis of the patient is based on histological classification and clinical characteristics, with only a few biomarkers having entered clinical practice.

Areas Covered: This article covers extensive recent research that has established novel potential biomarkers based on genomics, proteomics, and clinical characteristics. Validating and incorporating these biomarkers into clinical practice can improve prognosis, prediction of recurrence, and treatment response. Relevant literature was collected from PubMed, Scopus, and clinicaltrials.gov databases (November 2023).

Expert Opinion: Currently, defining prognostic markers in soft tissue sarcomas remains challenging. More studies are required, especially to personalize treatment through advanced genetic profiling and analysis using individual tumor and patient characteristics.