2023-07-13 04:00:53
Despite the graphic resemblance, both terms are actually used for tumors that are quite different from each other.
Sarcomas are rare, accounting for 1% of all cancer diagnoses in adults and around 15% of childhood cases.
Every year around 10 thousand patients are reported in Mexico.
Talking about cancer can be overwhelming and stressful, and even more so if the medical terms used are similar to each other. The natural consequences are confusion and disorientation in people. With this in mind, it is necessary to know and understand the differences between carcinoma and cancer. sarcoma because despite their resemblance they are actually quite different from each other.
In this regard, the oncologist Dale Shepard of Cleveland Clinic explains that carcinomas are the most common type of cancer and are the ones most people would immediately think of. Sarcomas are rare by comparison, and most people don’t know what they are and don’t remember anyone who has ever had one.
Carcinomas vs. sarcomas
Carcinomas are a type of cancer that begins in the epithelial cells, which cover the internal and external parts of the body. There are different types although the main ones are the following:
Basal cell carcinomas develop at the base of the outer layer of the skin. Squamous cell carcinomas form just below the surface of the outer layer of the skin. Transitional cell carcinomas begin in the tissues lining the bladder, ureters, kidneys, or other organs.
On the other hand, sarcomas originate in the connective tissues of the body, such as muscles, bones, blood vessels, fatty tissues, and fibrous tissues. Although rare compared to other types of cancer, they can be aggressive and require specialized treatment. There are two main types and more than 50 subtypes of sarcoma, which are:
Los osteosarcomas They begin in the bone, cartilage, or bone marrow. The soft tissue sarcomas They may begin in fat (liposarcoma), muscle (rhabdomyosarcoma or leiomyosarcoma), nerves (peripheral nerve sheath tumors), fibrous tissue (fibrosarcoma), blood or lymph vessels (angiosarcoma), or deep tissues of the the skin (epithelioid sarcoma).
Los sarcomas they are rare, accounting for only 1% of all adult cancer diagnoses and about 15% of childhood cancer diagnoses. However, each year, approximately 10,000 patients are added in Mexico.
This disease can affect both children and adults. Generally, in the case of soft tissue sarcoma it occurs more often in adults. Sarcoma of bone diagnoses occur most often in children, adolescents, and people older than 65 years.
Not all “omas” are cancer
In cancers, including carcinoma and sarcomacells divide uncontrollably, invade nearby tissues, and can eventually spread to distant sites.
“It’s important to know that benign masses can also end in ‘oma,’ which means ‘tumor,’ but these cells behave and are treated quite differently. For example, cells in benign tumors such as adenomas, fibromas, and angiomas will not invade nearby tissues or spread to other sites.”
Therefore, tumors do not have the same negative consequences as a carcinoma or a sarcoma.
Also read:
Sarcoma: Symptoms, ways to detect it and available treatments
Clinical case: IMSS saves a patient with Infiltrating Lobular Carcinoma
Merkel cell carcinoma, the rare disease that very few doctors can detect
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