Introduction

Abstract

The first edition of Histological Typing of Soft Tissue Tumours, published in 1969, represented a major step in the standardization of nomenclature in this specialty area. Accompanied by a glass slide set of more than a hundred common and exotic tumours, this book resulted in the rapid assimilation of a universal set of guidelines and diagnostic definitions by pathologists in many countries. In the intervening two decades numerous changes have occurred, and our committee has been challenged by the desire to incorporate new and exciting findings from the areas of immunohistochemistry and molecular biology into the classification with the need to develop a simple reproducible classification for practising pathologists. The current system, while based principally on standard microscopic observations, acknowledges and cites the use of diagnostically valuable ancillary techniques.