Dr. Wagner on Future Research Efforts in Sarcoma Subtypes

Michael Wagner, MD, an assistant professor in the Clinical Research Division of Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, discusses future research efforts in sarcoma subtypes.

The field of sarcoma is moving toward being more compartmentalized in terms of treatment, according to Wagner. As more is learned about sarcoma through large-scale collaborative efforts, a key focus is to determine what drives subtypes like angiosarcoma, leiomyosarcoma, desmoid fibromatosis, and epithelioid sarcoma, says Wagner. 

Each subtype is very different, but they have all historically been treated in the same way for pragmatic reasons, explains Wagner. These subtypes are rare and a certain number of patients need to be enrolled on clinical trials to learn more about them, which presents a challenge, Wagner adds. However, scientific advances have sparked more opportunities for collaborative research efforts in this area, Wagner concludes.