Sarcoma programme

Programme description

The sarcoma oncology unit based at The Royal Marsden Hospital registers more than 850 patients a year, many of whom come for primary disease management or for second opinions regarding further therapy. This combination of patient numbers and research infrastructure makes it ideally placed to make a major contribution to sarcoma research nationally and internationally.

More than 20 years ago the Sarcoma Unit established a comprehensive, prospectively maintained clinical database and now has data on 10,000 patients, providing a hugely valuable resource. This has generated a steady flow of research papers, providing valuable information on the behaviour of individual diseases and hypothesis generating ideas for future, disease-orientated clinical trials.

The Sarcoma Unit maintains a portfolio of clinical trials that encompass the major sarcoma subtypes, supporting the studies being conducted by the National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI), Sarcoma Clinical Studies Group, the EORTC Soft Tissue and Bone Sarcoma Group, working with Pharma on industry- sponsored trials and conducting its own, investigator-initiated studies. The clinical trials team comprises a Clinical Trials Coordinator, a Data Manager / Trials Coordinator, 2 research nurses and a Clinical Research Fellow, supported from local research funds or visiting fellowships.

The Head of the Unit is Dr Robin Jones.

There are four out-patient clinics in the week, one of which is multidisciplinary with surgical, medical oncology and radiation oncology patients seen on the same afternoon.

The importance of multidisciplinary management in sarcoma is reflected by the heavy support from several various oncology teams to provide a complete and complex specialist care for our sarcoma patients. Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) Meetings are held twice weekly, during which diagnosis and treatment of new patients is discussed, post-operative care is determined and the management of complex cases is discussed. A meeting to discuss thoracic surgical patients is held each week. Surgery for sarcoma is undertaken by dedicated surgical oncologists. For cases requiring reconstruction there is an extensive plastic and reconstructive surgical team available for collaborative surgical working. In addition, the MDT extended team includes dedicated representation from other site specific teams such as head and neck and gynaecology for joint surgical managements of sarcomas. The MDT additionally serves as a platform for discussion and treatment planning in patients who require specialist input from interventional radiology, thoracic surgery, palliative care, pharmacy, physiotherapy and rehabilitation.

All Fellows will have the opportunity to contribute to the research portfolio with their individual projects, leading to published abstracts and papers and will have an active role in the management of patients treated within clinical trials.

Fellows will be based across the Royal Marsden Chelsea (London).