Bone Cancer is a hard lump felt on the surface of a bone that may or may not be painful.
What To Look For
- pain or swelling in bones and joints, often more intense at night, and not necessarily associated with movement; the pain may be dull and constant, or may be felt only when pressure is applied.
- spontaneous bone fractures.
- fever, weight loss, fatigue, and impaired mobility, which sometimes occur in late stages of bone cancer.
Most benign bone tumours are painless and those cancers that originate in the bone, cartilage or bone tissue are not usually cancerous. It is rare to find a primary bone cancer victim.
Primary bone cancer generally attacks young people, especially those who are unusually tall for their age. It may affect teenagers, whose bones are in a stage of rapid growth. It can originate in bone marrow or cartilage.
The likelihood of cure depends on how early a tumour is detected and how spread it is. Benign tumours normally are not a health risk.
Causes
Mostly, in cases of primary bone cancer it is difficult to pinpoint an exact cause. There may be genetic connections as certain Chromosome abnormalities have been linked with bone cancer.
Cancer is more likely to occur in bones that have been fractured or infected in the past.
Exposure to chemicals in some kinds of dyes and paints, may increase the risk of bone cancer slightly.
Traditional Treatments
When cancer is diagnosed, the patient must get traditional, conventional treatment.
When it is possible, bone tumours are surgically removed. If the cancer is in an arm or a leg, the tumour can normally be removed without amputation.
It is a good idea to start physical therapy quickly to aid recovery.
Radiation therapy and chemotherapy may be given before surgery to reduce the size of the tumour, and radiation may be used after surgery to kill stray cancer cells. (For further information on these experimental treatments, see Cancer).
Complementary Therapies
For information on all complementary cancer therapies, see Cancer.
Prevention
Always be careful using paint, solvents, pesticides, household cleaners, and other products that may contain carcinogenic chemicals – use them with car and abide by any safety warnings. If you have ever been treated with radiation in the past, be alert for bone cancer symptoms and see a doctor at once if they occur.
When to seek further professional advice
- you have any of the symptoms listed in the above section.
