Introduction of bone cancer:
Primary bone cancer is cancer that forms in cells of the bone. Some types of primary bone cancer are malignant fibrous histiocytoma, osteosarcoma, Ewing sarcoma, and chondrosarcoma. Secondary bone cancer is cancer that spreads to the bone from another part of the body like liver, breast, or lung.
There are three types of bone cancer:
- Osteosarcoma - develops in growing bones, usually between ages 10 and 25.
- Chondrosarcoma - starts in cartilage, usually after age 50.
- Ewing's sarcoma - begins in nerve tissue in bone marrow of young people, often after treatment of another condition with radiation or chemotherapy.
Symptoms of Bone Cancer:
- Persistent pain
- Swelling
- Tenderness of a bone.
- They may have unexplained fracture of one or more bones, sometimes without noticeable trauma.
Diagnosis of Bone Cancer:
However, there are individuals in whom the primary cancer is not yet recognized at the time when the early metastatic lesion in bone becomes painful.
- Radiologic finding on X-ray is often destruction of bone.
- CAT scan, MRI, radionuclide bone scan or a skeletal survey may be done to pinpoint which bones have been affected.
Treatment of bone cancer:
Systemic therapy aimed at cancer cells that have spread throughout the body, includes chemotherapy, hormone therapy, and immunotherapy.
Local therapy aimed at killing cancer cells in one specific part of the body, includes radiation therapy and surgery.
- Surgery involves wide margin of tissue around the tumor being removed. Sarcomas involving muscles require removal of the entire affected muscle group.
- Radiation therapy is used to prevent local recurrences of radiosensitive tumors and may be given either before or after surgery.
- Chemotherapy - a number of drugs have proven to be effective in treating bone and soft tissue sarcomas. Effective single agents may include doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide, high-dose methotrexate, ifosfamide, dacarbazine, vincristine, dactinomycin, etoposide and investigational agents. Hormone therapy is either the removal of the organs which produce hormones which can promote the growth of certain types of cancer Biphosphonates are drugs that can be used to reduce bone pain and slow down bone damage in people who have cancer that has spread to their bones.