Rhabdomyosarcoma and other soft tissue sarcomas of childhood.

This review of the past year's literature summarizes the most relevant advances in the biology and therapy of rhabdomyosarcoma and other pediatric soft tissue sarcomas. The results of the third Intergroup Rhabdomyosarcoma Study clearly show that therapy based on specific risk factors offers the best chance of cure for children with rhabdomyosarcoma. The recent identification of nonrandom chromosomal translocations within distinct histologic subtypes of rhabdomyosarcoma and nonrhabdomyosarcoma soft tissue sarcomas offers a unique opportunity to improve our ability to diagnose, stage, and monitor these patients. Finally, identification of the genetic features that characterize these tumors will help us better understand the mechanisms involved in tumorigenesis and will facilitate the development of novel specific therapies.