Having gone through herself a terribly difficult childhood - being diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma at the age of 3 ½ years - Marcsi Benkő (14) wanted to help other children fighting cancer in coping with the challenges they face during treatment. She remembered how the other kids in the hospital ward had helped her by explaining things that she could not understand, and she was deeply scared of. The idea of producing short video messages narrated by peer children in their own words emerged. Read here Marcsi’s touching story about her journey from a child with Ewing sarcoma to a teenage patient advocate.

More than five years after therapy, our Editor-in-Chief Gabi Ott went back to the hospital where she was treated. But this time, it was not as a patient but as a patient advocate. Together with her colleagues, she attended to people looking for information on sarcoma. Being in the building also brought back memories of her darkest days – and the many people who helped her during this journey. A tribute to the nurses and doctors, and a patient organization.

Sarcoma patients in South Africa struggle to find the expertise required for correct diagnosis and appropriate treatment. Lauren Pretorius, Chief Executive Office of Campaigning for Cancer, provides her vision on how sarcoma care in South Africa can be transformed.

Diagnosing sarcomas is important but challenging: they are so rare that many doctors come across only a handful during their careers, and early symptoms are often vague. Soft tissue sarcomas being his specialisation, Dr. Avirup Chowdury from the Institute of Cancer Research in London, takes us through the diagnostic pathway and identifies key factors of an ideal scenario. He also give pointers for patients of suspicious symptoms.

Mandy Basson is a mother on a mission. Her daughter Abbie’s diagnosis of Ewing’s Sarcoma started a journey to improve diagnosis and treatment pathways for sarcoma patients in rural healthcare systems. This is the story of the birth of Sock it to Sarcoma!

We live in truly interesting times, finds Gerard van Oortmerssen, Co-Chair of the SPAGN Board. The latest wave of digital revolution, artificial intelligence, creates new opportunities for sarcoma patients and patient advocates. AI can facilitate access to information and peer-to-peer support. Moreover, it allows to collect patient reported outcomes and thus give sarcoma patients a stronger voice and say in research and care.