Genetic Study of Children With Soft Tissue Sarcoma or Rhabdomyosarcoma

OBJECTIVES:

• Identify genetically susceptible patients to therapy-induced myelodysplastic syndrome or acute myelogenous leukemia (t-MDS/AML) prior to initiation of high-dose chemotherapy for sarcoma.
• Identify patients who are at increased risk of t-MDS/AML during or after therapy.

OUTLINE: Blood is collected from patients at diagnosis (preferably before chemotherapy or transfusion), at end of therapy, and at 6 months, 1 year, 2 years, and 3 years after therapy.

Blood specimens are examined by clonality analysis (HUMARA), variant cell frequency (glycophorin A assay), GST NAT2/CYP1A1 genotyping, microsatellite instability, and ras mutation detection (single strand conformation polymorphism and sequencing of mutant alleles).

Patients do not receive the results of the genetic testing and the results do not influence the type or duration of treatment.

PROJECTED ACCRUAL: A total of 321 patients will be accrued for this study within 4 years.

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

• Diagnosis of sarcoma including:

• Rhabdomyosarcoma
• Ewing's sarcoma
• Primitive neuroectodermal tumor
• Fibrosarcoma
• Malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor
• Synovial cell sarcoma
• Osteosarcoma
• Other soft tissue sarcoma
• Must be currently receiving intensive or high-dose chemotherapy for sarcoma

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

Age:

• Children

Performance status:

• Not specified

Life expectancy:

• Not specified

Hematopoietic:

• Not specified

Hepatic:

• Not specified

Renal:

• Not specified

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

Biologic therapy

• Not specified

Chemotherapy

• See Disease Characteristics

Endocrine therapy

• Not specified

Radiotherapy

• Not specified

Surgery

• Not specified