Liposarcoma

Treatment

Mayo Clinic's experienced medical oncologists, radiation oncologists and surgeons work together as a team to create a customized liposarcoma treatment plan for you, giving you access to the latest options. Your treatment team may recommend one or more of the following.

Surgery

• Wide local excision. During surgical excision, your surgeon removes (excises) cancerous tissue, along with a margin of surrounding healthy tissue.
• Limb-sparing surgery. Your surgeon may use one of several surgical techniques to remove the tumor from your limb without amputation.
• Amputation. Large tumors or those located in complex regions may require surgery to remove all or part of the limb.

Other treatments

• Chemotherapy. Your doctor may recommend chemotherapy to shrink the tumor before surgery. Chemotherapy may also be used to try to kill small seeds of cancer in other parts of the body that even advanced imaging tests can't detect.
• Radiation therapy. Radiation therapy may be given before or after surgery to reduce the risk of recurrence.
• Experimental treatments. If you're an appropriate candidate, you may be eligible to participate in a clinical trial on an experimental treatment.

Read more about chemotherapy and radiation therapy.