Soft tissue is a vast network of supporting tissue - muscle, nerves, blood vessels, cartilage and more - that connects, binds and protects throughout the body.
Soft tissue has many important functions, including:
- Movement - muscles enable us to move our bodies and provide the strength to carry out physical tasks (a sarcoma that develops from muscle is a rhabdomyosarcoma).
- Connection - connective tissue, such as ligaments and tendons, bind our bones together and fuse them to muscle. They also keep muscle and nerves in place.
- Support - connective tissue supports our body organs by forming a soft cushion around them. Fat cells, which are another connective tissue, also provide a cushion and insulate the body at the same time (a liposarcoma is a sarcoma which develops from a fat cell).
- Protection - connective tissue forms scars to repair the body when we are injured. It fills in the gaps where the original tissue doesn't come back - helping our body to heal.
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