title: Long-lasting clinical benefit of sunitinib malate in the treatment of a case of heavily pre-treated metastatic liposarcoma.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Soft tissue sarcomas are a heterogeneous group of malignant neoplasms including several distinct entities with different cell differentiation and clinical prognosis, but which are often treated as a single disease.
  
  
  METHODS
  We report the case of a male patient, heavily treated for a metastatic well-differentiated liposarcoma occurring in the left lateral neck. He received radiotherapy and different lines of standard chemotherapy with local progression and lung metastasis. In November 2009, on the basis of a phase II study demonstrating the efficacy of sunitinib in patients with liposarcoma, the patient was treated with sunitinib at 37.5 mg daily in 4-week cycles on a compassionate use basis. Until November 2012 he received a total of 23 cycles of sunitinib treatment achieving a stable disease in all sites. Therapy with sunitinib is still ongoing without side effects.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our findings confirm that sunitinib may be a useful therapeutic tool in the treatment of some cases of pre-treated liposarcoma.
authors.affiliation: Medical Oncology Unit, University Hospital of Parma, Via Gramsci 14, 43126 Parma, Italy. rosa.porzio@libero.it
authors.forename: Rosa
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Porzio
authors.forename: Maria Angela
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Bella
authors.forename: Giulio
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Rossi
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ardizzoni
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D007211:Indoles / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008080:Liposarcoma / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000556:secondary; D008297:Male; D009154:Mutation; D009333:Neck; D047428:Protein Kinase Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D019009:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-kit / Q000235:genetics; D011758:Pyrroles / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D017479:Receptors, Platelet-Derived Growth Factor / Q000235:genetics; D000077210:Sunitinib
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D007211:Indoles; D047428:Protein Kinase Inhibitors; D011758:Pyrroles; D019009:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-kit; D017479:Receptors, Platelet-Derived Growth Factor; D000077210:Sunitinib