title: Molecular biological aspects of soft tissue tumors.
abstract: In the preceding, the reader has hopefully developed an appreciation of the major malignant tumors to be encountered in somatic soft tissues in children, adolescents, and young adults. In aggregate, this group of tumors accounts for about 20% of cancer in this age group. Importantly, they are curable tumors when nonmetastatic at presentation, but therapy appropriate to prognosis and tumor responsiveness is highly dependent on precise diagnosis. The historical morphologic methods alone will not suffice for this purpose, but the anticipated rapid advent of molecular genetic diagnostic and prognostic methods should. Useful, practical, and rapid genetic tests, available in the same time frame as the routine histopathologic evaluation of these tumors, are likely to forever change the diagnosis and management of these tumors, individually and as a group.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, CA 90027.
authors.forename: T J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Triche
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D016161:Genes, Retinoblastoma / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D008967:Molecular Biology; D009687:Nuclear Proteins; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D051736:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-mdm2; D012509:Sarcoma / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy; D012983:Soft Tissue Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy; D014178:Translocation, Genetic; D016159:Tumor Suppressor Protein p53 / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D009687:Nuclear Proteins; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D016159:Tumor Suppressor Protein p53; C497206:MDM2 protein, human; D051736:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-mdm2