Bone cancer is when there is an abnormal growth in the amount of tissue in a bone. These strange growths can be either benign or malignant, but usually malignant. There are two types of bone cancer; primary and secondary. In primary bone cancer, the cancer had actually started in the cells of the bone, whilst in secondary, the cancer has started in a different area and traveled through the body to the bone.
The three main types of bone cancer are osteosarcomas, Ewing’s sarcomas, and Chondrosarcoma. The most common out of the three is osteosarcomas, which is when new tissues are growing in the bones at an abnormal pace. Chondrosarcoma is strange tissue growth in the bone of the cartilage, and Ewing’s sarcoma, which may be the growth of premature nerve tissue in the bone marrow. Bone cancer can be caused by both hereditary and environmentally. Bone cancer is very rare, so both hereditary and environmental causes are small in numbers. There have only been a few researches that show possible environmental causes of this cancer.
A possibility is people who work in the agricultural business and get in contact with pesticides bring a 9 time higher risk of bone cancer to their children and adolescence. Li-Fraumeni syndrome is a condition that runs in families and can be passed down in genes and can increase your chances of several cancers, including bone cancer. Children with the eye cancer passed down by genes called hereditary retinoblastoma also have increased chances of osteosarcoma. The identified causes of bone cancer are unknown to scientists, but risk factors are more understood by scientists, which can help learn the causes. Scientists believe that the Paget’s disease of the bone can escalate the risk of bone cancer. Paget’s disease is towards elderly
people whose bone tissues worsen, especially in areas such as the skull, pelvis and spine. Another theory scientists have come up with is that are being exposed to a lot of radiation can increase the risk as well. This can include radiation therapy FOR cancer. Your medical history may show you if you have been or will be diagnosed with bone cancer as well. Bone cancer can be detected with a person’s symptoms (risk factors), blood tests, physical examinations, and results of image tests. These can help see if the blood cancer is there or not.
The best way a doctor can tell if you are diagnosed is if they do biopsy, which is a tissue or cell sample under a microscope. X-rays, CT scans, and MRI scan of the bones can help detect if you have bone cancer. Your medical history may show you if you have been or will be diagnosed with bone cancer as well. A blood test from your doctor will be used to measure alkaline phosphatase that can be found when broken bones heal, you get abnormal bone tissue or when you grow, all through enzymes. Some early signs of bone cancer can include tiredness, unexplained weight loss or bone wounds, fevers, and bone swelling or pain.
Bone cancer is unfortunately unknown to ways for reducing the risk. Although there are no ways of condensing the possibility of bone cancer, there are ways to know if you are at higher chance of getting it. These include genetics, if someone in your family has/had cancer, or if you inherit a genetic disease, which can increase your risk such as retinoblastoma. Also, treatments for cancer can also be the higher chance of receiving it. This includes the different therapies and surgeries that are made to prevent or demolish cancer. Another huge risk is if you have bone illnesses such as Paget’s Syndrome.
Bone cancer has three main options to choose from for treatment. They can be used all together or alone. The three different treatments include surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. The type of treatment used is based on the age, type, location and growth rate of the tumor. The surgery option has the option for the patient to choose from removing the cancerous part of the bone or dismembering the part of the body. Chemotherapy uses chemical substances for treatment of cancer. Radiation therapies are the use of X-rays, MRIs etc. for cancer treatment.