Overview of adult sarcoma burden and clinical pathways in Brazil

Abstract

Purpose: Sarcomas are a heterogeneous group of cancers classified as rare cancers and are often poorly characterized. In Brazil, little is known about the adult sarcoma burden and patients' clinical pathways.

Materials and methods: We analyzed data from the Brazilian Hospital-Based Cancer Registries System, which encompasses the entire country. The histologic criteria included sarcomas according to the International Classification of Diseases for Oncology, 3rd edition. All cases were histology-based. No central pathology review was performed. Patients < 18 years old were excluded. The variables were analyzed according to the center type, hospital patient volume (> 70 patients/year for 3 consecutive years), and geographical region. The results were based on valid data, and the missing values were reported.

Results: From 2000 to 2017, a total of 312 units and 49,878 cases were identified. Missing data proportion was stable. Soft tissue sarcomas were predominant, followed by bone sarcomas and gastrointestinal stromal tumors. The Southeast concentrated on the largest number of patients (51%), of high-complexity centers (CACONs; 52%), and of patients treated at CACONs (56.9%). In all regions, the majority of patients had localized disease at diagnosis. The proportion of patients starting their treatment within 60 days from diagnosis at CACON was 59.3% and 62.3% at others. Ten hospitals achieved the established threshold for high-volume center, of which seven were CACON.

Conclusion: This article highlights the need for further research on the profile of patients with sarcoma in Brazil and the importance of providing them a more effective diagnostic and therapeutic approach. This initiative is critical not just for planning treatment strategies but also to allocate medical resources and to improve quality of care and sarcoma patients outcomes.