Leiomyosarcoma or LMS is a very rare cancer type of cancer that can be grouped under the soft tissue sarcomas. A sarcoma is a cancer that forms in the supportive tissues, like the tissues of the bone, blood vessels, nerves, muscle fat, and cartilage. Leiomyosarcoma is a common type of sarcoma and usually occurs in adults. They originate from the muscle tissues that are known as smooth muscles. The smooth muscles comprise of involuntary muscles.

The involuntary muscles are those that move without our control; for example, muscles of the heart, digestive system, and so on. This means that a leiomyosarcoma can originate from any part of our body and spread to the other parts.

Cause of LMS

The cause of LMS is not yet known and the researchers are trying to establish a definitive cause for this disease. They say that it can be hereditary. The doctors believe that it can also occur in patients who might have been previously exposed to radiation therapy or even chemotherapy. The exposure to certain types of chemicals like herbicides, industrial pollutants (manufacturing of plastics), wood preservatives can cause this cancer.

Symptoms of LMS

Patients suffering from this LMS usually do not show any symptoms in the early stage. That is why they are diagnosed when the cancer begins to spread in the other parts. These symptoms include:

Treatment for LMS

The various treatments for LMS include: surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy. Most of the patients suffering from this disease are treated by a team of specialists from various fields. This team would usually include a surgeon, an oncologist, a pathologist, and a radiologist, a nurse who can give information about sarcoma and also give you reassurance, a counselor, an occupational therapist, a physiotherapist, and a dietician.

It would be helpful if you can find an oncologist who has some experience in treating patients having this kind of cancer. This is because leiomyosarcoma is a very rare kind of cancer and many oncologists hardly get to see one or two cases in their lifetime.

The treatment of leiomyosarcoma depends on various factors like: your health, size of the tumor, the position of the tumor, and the stage of cancer.

Surgery: The doctors first locate the tumor and then remove it by resection. This is the most common treatment for most of the sarcomas.

Radiotherapy: This is usually used when the leiomyosarcoma is of a large size and the oncologist thinks that there are chances of the tumor cells being left behind in a patient’s body. It can be given before or after the surgery to reduce the size of the tumor. It lasts for about four to six weeks and is given to a patient on a daily basis.

Chemotherapy: The chemotherapy treatment for leiomyosarcoma is usually given in the advanced stages. It can be given in the following ways:

• It can be given before surgery in order to shrink the size of the tumor
• It can be given after the surgery to eliminate any cancer cells that might not have been removed after surgery
• For patients who are in the advanced stage of leiomyosarcoma cancer, chemotherapy treatment is given to improve their life and control the symptoms

The chemotherapy drugs are usually given to destroy the fast growing cancer cells. The various drugs used for the treatment of leiomyosarcoma cancer are: Ifosfamide, doxorubicin, dacarbazine, docetaxel, trabectedin and gemcitabine. These drugs are usually given in combination with other drugs. The combination of drugs and their cycles will depend on the stage of the cancer, and the size of the tumor. Your oncologist will guide you with the treatment and the cycles of the chemotherapy given for leiomyosarcoma.

Your oncologist can also suggest a new technique called targeted therapy. In this treatment, the drugs inhibit certain enzymes that promote the growth of the tumor cells. One such drug is called imatinib or Gleevec, and is used for the treatment of gastrointestinal stromal tumor. There are more researchers being conducted for the treatment of leiomyosarcoma by chemotherapy. For this, they are trying to find the genetic mutations of the tumor that has developed.

Side Effects of Leiomyosarcoma Chemotherapy

There are many side effects of leiomyosarcoma chemotherapy. Before starting the treatment, you might have several questions related to chemotherapy treatment. The various side effects include: neutropenia or lowered resistance to infection, feeling of nausea or vomiting, hair loss, bruising or bleeding, sore mouth and ulcers, changes in the taste of the mouth, fatigue.

Doxorubicin can make your skin photo sensitive. You will need to apply a sun screen whenever you want to go out in the sun; otherwise you might get sunburn.

Leiomyosarcoma chemotherapy is a relatively new treatment for this cancer. It is usually administered if an oncologist thinks it to be necessary. In early stages, it is usually not required. The success rates of chemotherapy and other treatments will depend on various factors like the stage of cancer when detected, age of the patients, their health, weight etc. As this is a relatively new and rare type of cancer, you should try to find an oncologist who specializes in it.