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Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
The Dresden Sarcoma Center began its work in November 2016. Ten years later, it has become a center of excellence of supraregional importance for the diagnosis and treatment of rare soft tissue and bone tumours. Developments over the past decade demonstrate the significant growth of specialised care in Dresden: the number of cases discussed by the interdisciplinary sarcoma board increased from 430 in its founding year to 1,893 in 2025. The number of patients treated at the Sarcoma Center has also risen: while 122 patients received treatment in 2019, this figure had reached 230 by 2025.
Sarcomas are malignant tumours that arise in soft tissues – including muscles, fat, connective tissue, nerves and blood vessels – or in bone. They account for approximately one per cent of all malignant tumours in adults and are therefore classified as rare diseases. Of the approximately 500,000 people diagnosed with cancer in Germany each year, around 5,000 are affected by sarcomas, with highly individual disease profiles.
Interdisciplinary Care at the Highest Level
The Dresden Sarcoma Center brings together the expertise and diagnostic and therapeutic capabilities of a wide range of medical specialities. Its network includes, among others, visceral, thoracic and vascular surgery, orthopaedics, trauma and plastic surgery, haematology and oncology, radiation oncology, radiology, pathology and nuclear medicine. Paediatrics and adolescent medicine, as well as other specialised departments of University
Hospital Carl Gustav Carus Dresden, are also involved.
The cornerstone of this interdisciplinary collaboration is the sarcoma board, which meets twice a week. Here, individual findings are jointly reviewed, and further diagnostic procedures and treatment strategies are planned across medical disciplines. General practitioners and specialists in private practice, as well as colleagues from other hospitals, can also refer patients for discussion by the sarcoma board.
“Ten years of the Dresden Sarcoma Center demonstrate what specialised, interdisciplinary care can achieve. We jointly assess every case, plan treatment across disciplines and continuously develop our approach to care. This provides the foundation for achieving the best possible outcomes for patients, even in cases involving highly complex tumours,” says Professor Klaus-Dieter Schaser, Head of the Sarcoma Center and Medical Director of the UniversityCentre for Orthopedics, Traumatology & Plastic Surgery.
The range of treatments includes complex en bloc resections of the spine and pelvis, robotic procedures and image-guided surgical techniques, function-preserving plastic reconstruction following the resection of soft tissue and bone tumours, systemic therapies – including immunotherapy, targeted therapy, chemotherapy and antibody therapy – as well as radiotherapy, including intraoperative radiotherapy and proton therapy.
“Sarcomas present highly complex surgical challenges. It is essential that surgery, oncology, radiation oncology, radiology, pathology and other disciplines work closely together from the outset. Only in this way can tumour control, preservation of function and quality of life all be addressed equally,” explains Professor Jürgen Weitz, Head of the Sarcoma Center and Director of the Department of Gastrointestinal, Thoracic and Vascular Surgery.
Modern sarcoma treatment involves far more than treating the tumour itself. The Sarcoma Center therefore also incorporates psycho-oncological support, exercise and physical activity programmes, nutritional counselling, social counselling, nursing advice and support, as well as specialised palliative care into its treatment concept. Children and adolescents with sarcomas are treated in close collaboration with the Pediatric Oncology Center at the National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT/UCC) Dresden, which is also certified by the German Cancer Society (DKG).
Research as an Integral Part of Patient Care
In addition to clinical care, research is a key component of the Sarcoma Center. Where the relevant eligibility criteria are met, patients may gain access to new treatment approaches through clinical trials. The Clinical Trials Centre at NCT/UCC Dresden also enables participation in early-stage clinical development programmes for new drugs and combination therapies.
Through the PROSa+ study, which has been recruiting participants since November 2025, its participation in the HEROES-AYA network and the EU-funded KAYAC+ study, the Dresden Sarcoma Center is continuing to advance research into sarcoma treatment, including the assessment of quality indicators and their impact on patients' quality of life, the identification of long-term effects and improvements in care for young adults with sarcomas.
The multicentre NCT-RATIONALE study investigates whether comprehensive molecular analysis of tumours, combined with personalised treatment tailored to the findings, can improve outcomes for patients with advanced rare cancers such as sarcomas.
Other ongoing multicentre studies, some of them international, include research into a new treatment for advanced gastrointestinal stromal tumours (STRATEGIST3) and for locally advanced and metastatic chondrosarcoma, a type of bone tumour (CHONQUER study).
Networking and Collaboration
For rare diseases such as sarcomas, collaboration between specialised centers is particularly important. There are currently more than 20 sarcoma centres in Germany certified by the German Cancer Society (DKG).
Exchanges between these centers help establish common quality standards, facilitate interdisciplinary discussions of complex cases and accelerate the transfer of findings from research and clinical practice into patient care. One example is the inter-laboratory quality assurance exercise for retroperitoneal sarcomas – rare malignant soft tissue tumours located in the space behind the peritoneum. Treating these tumours is particularly challenging because of their proximity to vital organs and blood vessels.
The German Sarcoma Foundation (Deutsche Sarkom-Stiftung) is a key point of contact for patients, their families and healthcare professionals. As a joint organisation representing patients and experts, it advocates improved care structures, the establishment and quality assurance of specialised sarcoma centers, professional training, research and accessible,
easy-to-understand patient information.
Looking Ahead
The Dresden Sarcoma Center will continue to expand this collaboration in the future through partnerships with other specialised centers, participation in joint quality improvement projects and ongoing dialogue with the German Sarcoma Foundation and other network partners.
“Ten years of the Sarcoma Center above all represent ten years of teamwork. We would like to thank our patients for their trust, our staff for their daily commitment and our cooperation partners for their close collaboration. Our shared goal remains to continuously improve care for people living with sarcomas,” says Professor Uwe Platzbecker, Chief Medical Officer of Carl Gustav Carus University Hospital Dresden.
“The Dresden Sarcoma Center stands for interdisciplinary collaboration, clinical excellence and translational research closely connected to patient care. It is an impressive example of how medical expertise, technological innovation and scientific curiosity can come together to sustainably improve care for patients with rare tumours,” says Professor Esther Troost, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at TUD Dresden University of Technology.
Ten Years of the Dresden Sarcoma Center: Key Milestones
• 11/2016: Establishment of the Dresden Sarcoma Center
• 04/2021: Certification in accordance with the quality criteria of the German Cancer Society (DKG)
• 10/2022: Recognition as an Interdisciplinary Center for Bone Tumours by the Bone Tumour Working Group (AG KT)
• 04/2024: Successful recertification by the DKG
• 2017–2019: Initiation of and participation in the PROSa study investigating long-term effects in patients with sarcomas
• Since 10/2022: Participation in the HEROES-AYA network for adolescents and young adults with sarcomas
• Since 11/2025: Initiation of and participation in the PROSa+ study on quality of life and care experiences among long-term sarcoma survivors; launch of the podcast “selten und solide” (rare and solid) by the German Sarcoma Foundation
• 01/2025: Introduction of intraoperative radiotherapy (IORT)
• Since 2018: Structured documentation of 1,430 treated patients in the UCC-TDS tumour documentation system in accordance with DKG requirements, including 129 patients in the current year, 2026
Further Information
Website: https://www.nct-dresden.de/sarkome
Directory of Sarcoma Clinical Trials: https://www.nct-dresden.de/de/fuer-patienten/studienverzeichnis/?collectionfilte...
Heads of the Sarcoma Center:
Professor Klaus-Dieter Schaser, MD
Medical Director, UniversityCentre for Orthopedics, Traumatology & Plastic Surgery
Professor Jürgen Weitz, MD
Director, Department of Gastrointestinal, Thoracic and Vascular Surgery
Email: ucc-ambulanz@ukdd.de
Media Contact:
Anne-Stephanie Vetter
Public Relations Office
Faculty of Medicine Carl Gustav Carus, TU Dresden
National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT/UCC) Dresden
Tel.: +49 (0) 351 458 17903
Email: anne-stephanie.vetter@tu-dresden.de
Heads of the Sarcoma Center:
Professor Klaus-Dieter Schaser, MD
Medical Director, UniversityCentre for Orthopedics, Traumatology & Plastic Surgery
Professor Jürgen Weitz, MD
Director, Department of Gastrointestinal, Thoracic and Vascular Surgery
Email: ucc-ambulanz@ukdd.de
https://www.nct-dresden.de//eng The NCT/UCC Dresden is a joint institution of the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), the University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus Dresden, the Faculty of Medicine of the Technische Universität Dresden, and the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR). Patients are regarded as equal partners in research.
Heads of the Sarcoma Center
Source: Michael Kretzschmar
Copyright: UKDD / Michael Kretzschmar
Sarcoma tumor board
Source: Kirsten Lassig
Copyright: UKDD / Kirsten Lassig
Criteria of this press release:
Journalists, Scientists and scholars
Medicine, Nutrition / healthcare / nursing
transregional, national
Cooperation agreements, Organisational matters
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Heads of the Sarcoma Center
Source: Michael Kretzschmar
Copyright: UKDD / Michael Kretzschmar
Sarcoma tumor board
Source: Kirsten Lassig
Copyright: UKDD / Kirsten Lassig
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