Therapeutic options for synovial sarcoma

Synovial sarcomas account for approximately 5 to 10% of soft tissue sarcomas and 0.05 to 0.1% of all malignant neoplasms. They predominantly affect the extremities but can occur in any part of the body. More than 50% of the patients are expected to develop metastatic disease within 3-5 years. In some patients disease recurrence may develop after 20 years. The 5-year overall survival rate is 10% for patients with metastatic disease and 76% for patients with localized one. Age, tumour size, histological subtype, and adjuvant radiotherapy influence prognosis. The role of adjuvant chemotherapy has not been proven yet. There are several ongoing clinical trials to determine the efficacy of active agents used for therapy of locally advanced, relapsed/refractory or metastatic disease. Better understanding of the biological behaviour of synovial sarcomas would provide the future way for the targeted therapy in combination with conventional treatments.