New developments in the pathology and molecular biology of retroperitoneal sarcomas
Sarah Watson, Nadège Gruel, François Le Loarer
Abstract
Retroperitoneal sarcomas (RPS) refer to a heterogeneous group of malignancies of mesenchymal origin developing from retroperitoneal tissues and vessels. The most frequent RPS are well differentiated/dedifferentiated liposarcomas and leiomyosarcomas, but other rare histological subtypes can be observed. Over the last decade, significant advances have been made in the pathological and molecular characterization of sarcomas. These advances have led to major changes in their diagnostic management as well as in the development of new therapeutic strategies based on tumor biology and microenvironment. This review describes the current knowledge and recent findings in the pathology and molecular biology of the most frequent RPS subtypes.