Bone Cancer Prevention

Bone Cancer: A Rare Disease

Bone Cancer is an extremely rare form of cancer which affects no more than 3,000 people each year in the US. Treatment is usually successful in two out of every three cases. If not treated promptly, however, some types of bone cancer cells after appearing in the tissue of the bone or ligament can spread out into other areas and other tissues of the body.

Primary bone cancer is different from metastatic bone cancer in that the latter is the result of a different cancer which has then spread to the bone. Primary bone cancer, on the other hand, is indigenous to the bone where it first appears.

No Prevention and No Screening

Unfortunately, bone cancer is one of the many cancers that allow for little room in terms of prevention. This is because most of its risk factors cannot be avoided. Degenerative diseases, which affect old people, as well as hereditary diseases that affect children are often responsible for primary bone cancer.

As these types of causes are unpreventable, prevention becomes almost impossible. There are some measures, such as avoiding high doses of radiation or exposure to industrial chemicals, which become useful in the prevention of many different types of cancer, including primary bone cancer, but for the most part, early detection is the best one can hope for.

Since a special screening test for bone cancer is not recommended, to prevent more life threatening complications associated with the disease, one must rely squarely on early detection of signs and symptoms (which are often vague and associated with other ailments). Because primary bone cancer is a highly treatable disease, these measures can constitute a valid substitute for outright prevention of the disease.

Symptoms of Primary Bone Cancer

One of the most common symptoms for bone cancer is pain in one or more bones. Sometimes this pain comes in waves and it often intensifies in the night time hours. As the cancer grows, this sporadic local pain can eventually become a more constant pain. Bone pain is usually not, however, a symptom of bone cancer; it is also associated with arthritis or physical injuries.

But if these symptoms persist for a long time and it becomes more and more certain that they are not associated with benign conditions, a specific test for bone cancer should be requested. It is possible as well to notice swelling or even a lump on the affected bone. The more generalized symptoms associated with a bone cancer that has already spread to other areas includes fatigue, weight loss and fever.

If one or more of these symptoms persist, a doctor can then determine the presence of bone cancer using x-rays, a CT scan, or an MRI, followed by a biopsy of the affected area.