NCCN Guidelines® Insights: Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors, Version 2.2022.

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) are the most common type of soft tissue sarcoma that occur throughout the gastrointestinal tract. Most of these tumors are caused by oncogenic activating mutations in the KIT or PDGFRA genes. The NCCN Guidelines for GIST provide recommendations for the diagnosis, evaluation, treatment, and follow-up of patients with these tumors. These NCCN Guidelines Insights summarize the panel discussion behind recent important updates to the guidelines, including revised systemic therapy options for unresectable, progressive, or metastatic GIST based on mutational status, and updated recommendations for the management of GIST that develop resistance to specific tyrosine kinase inhibitors.

Medicare Payment for Orthopaedic Oncology Procedures Over the Past 20 Years.

BACKGROUND: Medicare payment has been examined in a variety of medical and surgical specialties. This study examines Medicare payment in the subspecialty of orthopaedic oncology. METHODS: The Physician Fee Schedule Look-up Tool was used to obtain payment information from 2000 to 2020 for procedures related to orthopaedic oncology billed to Medicare. RESULTS: For the 38 included orthopaedic oncology procedures, inflation-adjusted Medicare payment decreased an average of 13.6% overall from 2000 to 2020. After adjusting for inflation, the payment for procedures related to spine and pelvis increased by 7.6%, procedures relating to limb salvage increased by 14.6%, procedures associated with the surgical management of complications decreased by 26.9%, and procedures relating to metastatic disease management decreased by 34.8%. CONCLUSION: Medicare payment has declined by 13.6% from 2000 to 2020. This variation in Medicare payment represents a difference in valuation of these procedures by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and could be used to direct healthcare policy.

Soft Tissue Sarcoma, Version 2.2022, NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology.

Soft tissue sarcomas (STS) are rare malignancies of mesenchymal cell origin that display a heterogenous mix of clinical and pathologic characteristics. STS can develop from fat, muscle, nerves, blood vessels, and other connective tissues. The evaluation and treatment of patients with STS requires a multidisciplinary team with demonstrated expertise in the management of these tumors. The complete NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines) for Soft Tissue Sarcoma provide recommendations for the diagnosis, evaluation, and treatment of extremity/superficial trunk/head and neck STS, as well as retroperitoneal/intra-abdominal STS, desmoid tumors, and rhabdomyosarcoma. This portion of the NCCN Guidelines discusses general principles for the diagnosis and treatment of retroperitoneal/intra-abdominal STS, outlines treatment recommendations, and reviews the evidence to support the guidelines recommendations.

NCCN Guidelines Insights: Soft Tissue Sarcoma, Version 1.2021.

The NCCN Guidelines for Soft Tissue Sarcoma provide recommendations for the diagnosis, evaluation, treatment, and follow-up for patients with soft tissue sarcomas. These NCCN Guidelines Insights summarize the panel discussion behind recent important updates to the guidelines, including the development of a separate and distinct guideline for gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs); reconception of the management of desmoid tumors; inclusion of further recommendations for the diagnosis and management of extremity/body wall, head/neck sarcomas, and retroperitoneal sarcomas; modification and addition of systemic therapy regimens for sarcoma subtypes; and revision of the principles of radiation therapy for soft tissue sarcomas.

Soft Tissue Sarcoma, Version 2.2018, NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology.

Soft tissue sarcomas (STS) are rare solid tumors of mesenchymal cell origin that display a heterogenous mix of clinical and pathologic characteristics. STS can develop from fat, muscle, nerves, blood vessels, and other connective tissues. The evaluation and treatment of patients with STS requires a multidisciplinary team with demonstrated expertise in the management of these tumors. The complete NCCN Guidelines for STS provide recommendations for the diagnosis, evaluation, and treatment of extremity/superficial trunk/head and neck STS, as well as intra-abdominal/retroperitoneal STS, gastrointestinal stromal tumors, desmoid tumors, and rhabdomyosarcoma. This portion of the NCCN Guidelines discusses general principles for the diagnosis, staging, and treatment of STS of the extremities, superficial trunk, or head and neck; outlines treatment recommendations by disease stage; and reviews the evidence to support the guidelines recommendations.

NCCN Guidelines Insights: Bone Cancer, Version 2.2017.

The NCCN Guidelines for Bone Cancer provide interdisciplinary recommendations for treating chordoma, chondrosarcoma, giant cell tumor of bone, Ewing sarcoma, and osteosarcoma. These NCCN Guidelines Insights summarize the NCCN Bone Cancer Panel's guideline recommendations for treating Ewing sarcoma. The data underlying these treatment recommendations are also discussed.

Dedifferentiated liposarcoma of the lower extremity with low-grade dedifferentiation and low-grade osteosarcomatous component.

Dedifferentiated liposarcoma can arise de novo or as a complication of a preexisting well-differentiated liposarcoma. We describe the radiologic and pathologic features of a long-standing liposarcoma with multiple recurrences in a 59-year-old male. Imaging demonstrated a heterogeneous fat-containing mass in the anterior thigh. The adjacent proximal femur showed irregular cortical new bone, eventually followed by intramedullary osteoblastic involvement and pathologic fracture. Histologic assessment at resection revealed dedifferentiated liposarcoma with low-grade osteosarcomatous component. The patient subsequently developed metastatic lesions in the lungs containing osteoid and osteoblastic bone metastases. We discuss the radiologic and pathologic features of this rare entity that, to our knowledge, has previously been reported to directly involve osseous structures in only one other case and discuss the potential pitfalls in diagnosis.

Soft Tissue Sarcoma, Version 2.2016, NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology.

Soft tissue sarcomas (STS) are rare solid tumors of mesenchymal cell origin that display a heterogenous mix of clinical and pathologic characteristics. STS can develop from fat, muscle, nerves, blood vessels, and other connective tissues. The evaluation and treatment of patients with STS requires a multidisciplinary team with demonstrated expertise in the management of these tumors. The complete NCCN Guidelines for Soft Tissue Sarcoma (available at NCCN.org) provide recommendations for the diagnosis, evaluation, and treatment of extremity/superficial trunk/head and neck STS, as well as intra-abdominal/retroperitoneal STS, gastrointestinal stromal tumor, desmoid tumors, and rhabdomyosarcoma. This manuscript discusses guiding principles for the diagnosis and staging of STS and evidence for treatment modalities that include surgery, radiation, chemoradiation, chemotherapy, and targeted therapy.

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors, version 2.2014.

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) are the most common soft tissue sarcoma of the gastrointestinal tract, resulting most commonly from KIT or platelet-derived growth factor receptor α (PDGFRα)-activating mutations. These NCCN Guideline Insights highlight the important updates to the NCCN Guidelines for Soft Tissue Sarcoma specific to the management of patients with GIST experiencing disease progression while on imatinib and/or sunitinib.

Soft tissue sarcoma, version 2.2014.

These NCCN Guidelines Insights highlight the important updates to the NCCN Guidelines for Soft Tissue Sarcoma (STS) specific to the role of radiation therapy in the management of patients with retroperitoneal/intra-abdominal STS. The guidelines have also included recommendations for genetic testing and counseling for patients with a clinical and/or family history of genetic cancer syndromes associated with a predisposition for the development of STS.

Bone cancer.

Primary bone cancers are extremely rare neoplasms, accounting for fewer than 0.2% of all cancers. The evaluation and treatment of patients with bone cancers requires a multidisciplinary team of physicians, including musculoskeletal, medical, and radiation oncologists, and surgeons and radiologists with demonstrated expertise in the management of these tumors. Long-term surveillance and follow-up are necessary for the management of treatment late effects related to surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy. These guidelines discuss the management of chordoma, giant cell tumor of the bone, and osteosarcoma.

Calcaneal acrometastasis from urothelial carcinoma of the ureter: a case report and literature review.

PURPOSE: Ureteral cancer is a rare entity. Typical symptoms are painless hematuria as well as flank pain. Bone metastasis of ureteral cancer can occur in nearby bone structures, such as the spine, pelvis, and hip bone. Distal bone metastasis, such as that in the calcaneus bone, however, is rare. CASE REPORT: An 82-year-old woman presented to the orthopedic clinic at the university hospital with a 3-month history of left heel pain. A magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of her foot demonstrated a calcaneal lytic lesion. A biopsy of the lytic lesion showed urothelial carcinoma with squamous differentiation. A computed tomography (CT) scan of the abdomen and pelvis showed left hydronephrosis and an obstructive mass in the left ureter, at the iliac crossing. The patient received combined therapy that included local radiation, bisphosphonate, and chemotherapy, with complete resolution of her cancer-related symptoms. However, she eventually died from the progressive disease, 20 months after the initial diagnosis. CONCLUSION: This case highlights the rare presentation of ureter cancer with an initial presentation of foot pain, secondary to calcaneal metastasis. Multimodality therapy provides effective palliation of symptoms and improved quality of life. We also reviewed the literature and discuss the clinical benefits of multidisciplinary cancer care in elderly patients.

Soft tissue sarcoma, version 2.2012: featured updates to the NCCN guidelines.

The major changes to the 2012 and 2011 NCCN Guidelines for Soft Tissue Sarcoma pertain to the management of patients with gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) and desmoid tumors (aggressive fibromatosis). Postoperative imatinib following complete resection for primary GIST with no preoperative imatinib is now included as a category 1 recommendation for patients with intermediate or high risk of recurrence. The panel also reaffirmed the recommendation for preoperative use of imatinib in patients with GISTs that are resectable with negative margins but associated with significant surgical morbidity. Observation was included as an option for patients with resectable desmoid tumors that are small and asymptomatic, not causing morbidity, pain, or functional limitation. Sorafenib is included as an option for systemic therapy for patients with desmoid tumors.

Osteolytic lesion of the tibial diaphysis after cementless TKA.

Biomaterial wear debris is a known contributing factor in aseptic loosening of total joint prostheses, particularly when cementless tibial trays are used in total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Local inflammatory response can lead to osteolysis and aseptic loosening of implants. The resulting lesions require careful clinical evaluation. This article presents a case of a 76-year old man with a remote history of prostate cancer and cigarette smoking who presented with acute onset left knee and tibia pain 15 years after TKA. Radiographs showed an osteolytic lesion in the distal tibial diaphysis and magnetic resonance imaging revealed a cystic lesion with evidence concerning for pathologic mid-shaft fracture. Biopsy of the lesion confirmed a foreign body reaction and revision TKA was performed. The patient was seen at 3-year follow-up without complication. The existing literature presents cases reporting osteolytic lesions of the distal femur and proximal tibial metaphysis due to polyethylene wear debris and foreign body reaction following TKA. We are unaware of case reports involving osteolysis of this etiology extending into the distal tibial diaphysis. We conclude that polyethylene wear debris with foreign body reaction should be considered in the differential diagnosis of an osteolytic lesion extending into the tibial diaphysis following TKA.

Expression of an exogenous human Oct-4 promoter identifies tumor-initiating cells in osteosarcoma.

We explored the nature of the tumor-initiating cell in osteosarcoma, a bone malignancy that predominately occurs in children. Previously, we observed expression of Oct-4, an embryonal transcriptional regulator, in osteosarcoma cell cultures and tissues. To examine the relationship between Oct-4 and tumorigenesis, cells from an osteosarcoma biopsy (OS521) were stably transfected with a plasmid containing the human Oct-4 promoter driving a green fluorescent protein (GFP) reporter to generate the transgenic line OS521Oct-4p. In culture, only approximately 24% of the OS521Oct-4p cells were capable of activating the transgenic Oct-4 promoter; yet, xenograft tumors generated in NOD/SCID mice contained approximately 67% GFP(+) cells, which selectively expressed the mesenchymal stem cell-associated surface antigens CD105 and ICAM-1. Comparison of the tumor-forming capacity of GFP-enriched and GFP-depleted cell fractions revealed that the GFP-enriched fractions were at least 100-fold more tumorigenic, capable of forming tumors at doses of <300 cells, and formed metastases in the lung. Clonal populations derived from a single Oct-4/GFP(+) cell were capable of forming tumors heterogeneous for Oct-4/GFP expression. These data are consistent with the cancer stem cell model of tumorigenesis in osteosarcoma and implicate a functional link between the capacity to activate an exogenous Oct-4 promoter and tumor formation. This osteosarcoma tumor-initiating cell appears highly prolific and constitutes a majority of the cell population in a primary xenograft tumor, which may provide a biological basis for the particular virulence of this type of cancer.