Molecular Markers in Vascular Leiomyosarcomas

Prospective studies evaluating the clinical and therapeutic use of β-catenin and insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor in patients with vascular leiomyosarcomas should be performed, according to a study published in JAMA Surgery.¹

Investigators conducted a retrospective medical record review of a cohort of patients with vascular leiomyosarcoma who presented to The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, TX, between January 1993 and April 2012. Their objective was to evaluate patient outcomes and the association between vascular leiomyosarcomas and immunohistochemical molecular markers to determine if there was any potential prognostic or therapeutic use.

Data were collected from 63 patients with localized disease who had undergone surgical resection. Median age at diagnosis was 58 years and 65% were female; 81% were white. Median time to local recurrence was 43 months, median time to distant recurrence was 25 months, and the median time to concurrent local and distant recurrences was 15 months (P = .04).

Results showed that strong presence of β-catenin (HR, 5.33; 95% CI, 0.97 – 29.30; P = .06) and insulin-like growth factor receptor 1 (HR, 2.74; 95% CI, 1.14 – 6.56; P = .02) were linked to poor disease-specific survival.

Reference

1. Roland CL, Boland GM, Demicco EG, et al. Clinical observations and molecular variables of primary vascular leiomyosarcoma [published online ahead of print December 2, 2015]. JAMA Surg. doi: 10.1001/jamasurg.2015.4205.