Bark N Wag 15 Minute Vet Talk

What is a soft tissue sarcoma? Soft tissue sarcomas are a broad category of tumors including those that arise from the connective, muscle, or nervous tissues in dogs and cats. These tumors are the result of abnormal production of these cell types in an uncontrolled manner. Connective, muscle, and nervous tissues are present throughout the entire body; therefore, these tumors can develop over the chest, back, side, legs, and facial tissues of your pet. Soft tissue sarcomas make up about 15% of cancers of the skin affecting dogs and about 7% of those affecting cats. Fibrosarcomas are common in dogs and are a type of soft tissue sarcoma (see handout "Fibrosarcoma in Dogs" for more information). "Soft tissue sarcomas make up about 15% of cancers of the skin affecting dogs and about 7% of those affecting cats." Even though soft tissue tumors arise from many different types of cells, they all behave in a similar manner and their treatment is typically the same. What causes soft tissue sarcomas? The reason why a par