PROGNOSTICAL AND THERAPEUTIC RELEVANCE OF P53-MUTATIONS IN SOFT-TISSUE SARCOMAS

Mutational analysis concerns mostly carcinomas and ist not comprehensi ve for soft tissue sarcomas (STS). The functional importance of differ ent p53 mutations for the clinical out come is still unknown. We inves tigated retrospective 91 STS's from 67 patients (23 patients with mali gnant fibrous histiocytoma, 23 with leiomyosarkoma and 21 with liposar coma) with known clinical follow up for mutations in Exon 4-9 of the p 53 gene with a nonradioaktive SSCP analysis and sequencing method. 16 samples from 11 patients showed mutations. That is a frequence of 16,4 % without differences between the investigated STS types. We have not found any correlation between the type of p53 mutation and STS type, p 53 mutation and grading, localisation, rezidive rate and the tumor siz e. In the follow up period (average 61 months) the death-rate for pati ents without mutation was 22% (13 of 56 patients). With p53 mutation i t was 73% (8 of 11 patients). Patients with out frame-shift mutation h ave already died within 3 years after diagnosis (7 of 7 patients). Onl y one of 4 patients with frame-shift-mutation died within the follow u p period. Our results showed the functional relevance of different p53 mutations and there clinical importance.