Blog 6 Skeletal Disease

Skeletal Disease - Osteosarcoma

Osteosarcoma is a skeletal disease that affects the long bones in the knee, hip, or shoulder. Another name for osteosarcoma is osteogenic sarcoma. This disease happens to be more likely to occur in males under 30 than women and the cause of this disease is unknown. Some symptoms are pain, swelling, and inability to move. It is a bone cancer and is not very common. According to the American Cancer Society, about 1,000 new cases are diagnosed and about 450 of them are children and teens. About 10% of cases will occur in people over the age of 60. The prognosis for osteosarcoma patients varies depending on how far the tumor has spread and what stage it is in. Although there are no particular screening tests for osteosarcoma, most cases are found in early stages and doctors are allowed to intervene before it metastasizes to the other body parts. Through the use of an MRI, X-ray and CT scan, bone scan, and a biopsy, an osteosarcoma is introduced. Osteosarcoma is then treated with surgery or chemotherapy or radiation therapy or all three. A surgeon will go in and remove the tumor and try to get all of the tumors in order to leave behind the healthy tissue. If the tumor is in a bone or joint then the surgeon will still go in and remove the areas that are infected by the tumor and then use a metal implant or an allograft or a combination of both to repair the bone. An allograph is a bone that is taken from a cadaver. Sometimes the surgery may result in amputation in rare cases when the tumor's size and location make it necessary to.



Sources:
https://www.britannica.com/science/osteosarcoma
https://www.cancer.org/cancer/osteosarcoma/detection-diagnosis-staging/signs-and-symptoms.html