A practical and comprehensive immunohistochemical approach to the diagnosis of superficial soft tissue tumors.

Soft tissue tumors include neoplasms of specific and unknown lineages, and, therefore, lineage markers of smooth muscle, skeletal muscle, endothelial, epithelial and Schwann cells have proven useful in everyday practice. However, groups of tumors remain that are defined essentially on grounds of histology; others can be defined by molecular genetic studies. The complex distribution patterns of many antigens and loss of some differentiation antigens in malignant tumors often necessitate the use of panels of antibodies. Optimally such panels should address all significant differential diagnostic alternatives. There is little doubt that numerous new differentiation markers will appear in the future. The evaluation of tumor proliferation, apoptosis, and cell cycle control will give new information related to tumor biology and prognosis.