Dr Robin Jones
Institute of Cancer Research
Awarded: £120,000
Research led by Professor Robin Jones, and Yuen Bun Tam, as part of his Sarcoma UK funded PhD, discovered key differences between sarcomas that occur in adolescents and young adults compared to other age groups. These differences could affect how sarcomas respond to treatment, which may, in turn, influence people’s likelihood of survival.
Key findings
- Researchers have discovered that adolescents and young adults have distinct biological differences in their sarcoma compared to other age groups.
- The team identified a potential biological ‘signature’ that could help predict which adolescent and young adult patients are most at risk of having an aggressive sarcoma which spreads to other areas of the body.
- These findings may help guide treatment decisions and improve outcomes for these patients.
What do biological differences mean in relation to sarcoma?
Sarcomas and other cancers are often caused by mutations and changes in the biology of cells. This can mean that different genes are expressed compared to healthy cells, resulting in different proteins being present.
These changes cause the cell to function differently. However, even within the same sarcoma subtype, tumours can be different at the biological level from one person to another. This may affect how aggressive the sarcoma is, and which treatments are most effective.
What the researchers did
The team used data from 309 people with soft tissue sarcomas or benign soft tissue tumours, across nine different subtypes. They analysed the proteins found in these tumours and discovered five proteins that were present in sarcoma tumours from all ages, but were expressed at significantly different levels in different age groups. They discovered that these proteins have different functions and as a result could affect how sarcoma progresses depending on the age of the individual.
The team then looked specifically at samples from adolescent and young adult patients. They compared the biological make-up of the tumours with information about the patients’ outcomes. From this they were able to identify a biological pattern – a “signature” – associated with poorer outcomes. If valid, this could potentially be used by clinicians to determine risk and identify the patients in this age group that most likely to need intensive treatment to prevent their cancer from spreading.
What this means for patients
Despite sarcomas being more common in adolescents and young adults, improvements in outcomes have been slower compared to other age ranges. These findings may help guide treatment decisions and improve outcomes for these patients. It could help predict those who need more intensive treatment and spare those with less aggressive cancer from the side effects of overtreatment.
Next steps
The team are continuing their work to confirm if the same biological pattern appears in larger groups of patients. They will test the accuracy of the ‘signature’ identified with the hope of making it feasible to use as a clinical test in the future.
They will also work on better understanding the link between this ‘signature’ and the ability of the tumour to spread. This knowledge could aid the identification of new treatment options to manage soft tissue tumours in adolescents and young adults.
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