Osteosarcoma bone cancer symptoms & treatment

Osteosarcoma is a common form of bone cancer and it can spread to other parts of the body. Osteosarcoma bone tumors are usually located in the arms or legs, but this cancer can also occur on the jaw bone. In rare cases, osteosarcoma tumors occur on the spine or in soft tissue or organs in the abdomen. Osteosarcoma symptoms tend to affect children and teenagers who are experiencing growth spurts.

Symptoms of osteosarcoma

Osteosarcoma symptoms include pain along an area of a bone. The pain occurs most often at the ends of arm or leg bones – where the bone is growing more quickly. At first, the pain may come and go, and it may be worse at night. Osteosarcoma symptoms may also include:

• Swelling over a bone or bony part of the body
• A bone that breaks for no known reason

If you experience bone pain, it’s important to see your doctor right away, especially if you’re an older adult.

Risk factors for osteosarcoma

Osteosarcoma affects mostly children, teens and young adults. It occurs most often in teens but it can affect people in any age group.

Some things that increase the likelihood of having osteosarcoma cancer are:

• Having certain gene mutations
• Being between 10 and 30 years old
• Being a child who is tall for their age
• Having had chemotherapy or radiation therapy in the past
• Being male
• Being African American or Hispanic

Having certain noncancerous bone diseases or some rare inherited cancer syndromes can also increase the risk of osteosarcoma.

Diagnosis of osteosarcoma

To diagnose osteosarcoma, your doctor will conduct a physical exam. In addition, they may order imaging tests such as:

• X-rays – to determine if there are tumors on the bones or organs
• Bone scan – to help determine if cancer cells have spread to other bones
• CT, MRI or PET scans – to determine if the tumor has spread to other parts of the body

If a tumor is found, your doctor will need to take a sample of the tissue (biopsy) to determine whether it’s cancerous.

Osteosarcoma treatment options

If you have osteosarcoma, your Aurora care team will work with you to determine the best treatment options.

Osteosarcoma treatments may include surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy. Chemotherapy is sometimes done before surgery to shrink the size of the tumor.

The kind of treatment you’ll receive and your osteosarcoma prognosis depend on many details about you and the cancer such as:

• Location and size of the tumor
• Type of tumor (based on microscopic examination)
• Your age, gender and weight at diagnosis
• Whether cancer has spread to other parts of the body
• Whether you’ve had previous treatment for a different cancer
• Whether you have certain genetic diseases

After treatment for osteosarcoma, we’ll recommend you come back for screening at intervals to be sure the cancer hasn’t returned.

Depending on what kind of osteosarcoma treatment you’ve had, you may also need plastic surgery. Physical therapy or occupational therapy may be recommended to help you regain or relearn use of the part of your body that was affected.