Liposarcoma

Liposarcoma is a mesenchymal malignancy that predominantly arises in the retroperitoneum, trunk, and extremities. Histologic subtypes of liposarcoma include well-differentiated/dedifferentiated, myxoid/round cell, and pleomorphic liposarcoma. Although liposarcoma is rare and can occur in almost any anatomic location, it is the most common soft tissue sarcoma in the retroperitoneum, and surgery remains the only potentially curative therapy. This review discusses liposarcoma pathogenesis, classification, clinical-diagnostic evaluation, treatment, and surveillance. The cornerstone of treatment is surgery, with the main therapeutic goals of improving survival, limiting local recurrence, maximizing function, and minimizing morbidity. Perioperative radiation therapy may be indicated in patients with large high-grade liposarcomas. Systemic treatment—whether traditional chemotherapy or molecularly targeted therapy—may benefit patients depending on their histologic subtype, location, and extent of disease. For the majority of patients, however, systemic treatment is not curative. Controversial issues in the management of liposarcoma, such as surgical margins and extent of resection, are also discussed. This review contains 2 figures, 5 tables and 39 references Key words: atypical lipomatous liposarcoma, liposarcoma, myxoid liposarcoma, pleomorphic liposarcoma, retroperitoneal sarcoma, soft tissue sarcoma, well-differentiated/dedifferentiated liposarcoma