Molecular target therapy for soft tissue sarcoma

Abstract

Soft tissue sarcoma (STS) is one of the rare and intractable cancers, and most types of STS are not sensitive to chemotherapy. Development of specific molecular target therapy for each type of STS is necessary. There are specific chromosome translocations in 20-30% of STS, but their products are mostly transcriptional factors, and target therapy for those factors are difficult to develop. Trabectedin is an alkylating agent and is also inhibit function of transcriptional factors, and shows efficacy for translocation-related sarcoma (TRS) such as myxoid liposarcoma. As molecular target therapies for gene mutations, success in molecular target therapy for c-kit and PDGFR mutation in GIST was followed by efficacy for rare sarcomas such as IMT or DFSP, but there are few developments in other sarcomas. STSs are frequently associated with angiogenesis and angio-gehesis inhibitors such as pazopanib show some efficacy. Then immune checkpoint inhibitors also have been developed.