Bone Cancer
Overview
What is the Bone Cancer?
Bone cancer happens when the bone cells start to grow uncontrollably. Pain is the first symptom of bone cancer and its severity increases as the disease progresses.
Bone cancers are rare, and they could either start in bones or spread from other organs to bones.
Causes of Bone Cancer?
Cancer occurs when the cells in a certain area of your body divide and multiply too rapidly. This produces a lump of tissue known as a tumour.
The exact reason why this happens is often not known, but certain things can increase your chance of developing bone cancer, including previous radiotherapy treatment other bone conditions, such as Paget’s disease of the bone
rare genetic conditions, such as Li-Fraumeni syndrome a history of certain other conditions, including retinoblastoma and umbilical hernia
Risk Factors
Things that might make you more likely to get bone cancer include:
- Cancer treatment. Bone tumors happen more often in people who’ve had radiation, stem cell transplants, or certain chemotherapy drugs for other cancers.
- Inherited conditions. Diseases passed down through your genes, such as Li-Fraumeni syndrome and an eye cancer called retinoblastoma, can make you more likely to get bone cancer.
- Paget’s disease of bone. This benign bone condition may also increase your odds.
Diagnosis
There are various ways to detect and diagnose bone cancers.
If an individual is suspected to have a bone tumour, the doctor will start with taking a complete medical history to find out other symptoms that could point towards bone cancer. The doctor may physically examine the suspected area for an abnormal mass or other signs of a bone tumour.
a. Bone Scan
b. Imaging Tests
c. Bone biopsy
Treatment
The treatment recommendations for bone cancer are made based on key factors such as the type of the tumour, stage of the tumour, size and location of the tumour, patient’s age and the overall health of the patient.
Surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy are the main lines of treatment for bone cancer.
