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Summary
Cancer that starts in a bone is uncommon. Cancer that has spread to the bone from another part of the body is more common.
There are three types of bone cancer:
- Osteosarcoma - occurs most often between ages 10 and 19. It is more common in the knee and upper arm.
- Chondrosarcoma - starts in cartilage, usually after age 40
- Ewing's sarcoma - occurs most often in children and teens under 19. It is more common in boys than girls.
The most common symptom of bone cancer is pain. Other symptoms vary, depending on the location and size of the cancer. Surgery is often the main treatment for bone cancer. Other treatments may include amputation, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. Because bone cancer can come back after treatment, regular follow-up visits are important.
NIH: National Cancer Institute
Diagnosis and Tests
- Bone Biopsy (American College of Radiology; Radiological Society of North America) Also in Spanish
- Bone Cancer Stages (American Cancer Society) Also in Spanish
- Bone Scan (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
- Stages of Ewing Sarcoma (National Cancer Institute) Also in Spanish
- Tests for Bone Cancer (American Cancer Society) Also in Spanish
- TP53 Genetic Test (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Prevention and Risk Factors
- Risk Factors for Bone Cancer (American Cancer Society) Also in Spanish
Treatments and Therapies
- Drugs Approved for Bone Cancer (National Cancer Institute)
- Surgery for Bone Cancer (American Cancer Society) Also in Spanish
- Treatment Option Overview (Ewing Sarcoma) (National Cancer Institute) Also in Spanish
- Treatment Option Overview (Osteosarcoma) (National Cancer Institute) Also in Spanish
Living With
- Living as a Bone Cancer Survivor (American Cancer Society) Also in Spanish
Specifics
- Bone Metastasis (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
- General Information about Ewing Sarcoma (National Cancer Institute) Also in Spanish
- General Information about Osteosarcoma and Undifferentiated Pleomorphic Sarcoma (UPS), Formerly Called Malignant Fibrous Histiocytoma (MFH) of Bone (National Cancer Institute) Also in Spanish
- Metastatic Bone Disease (American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons)
Genetics
- Chordoma: MedlinePlus Genetics (National Library of Medicine)
- Ewing sarcoma: MedlinePlus Genetics (National Library of Medicine)
- Li-Fraumeni syndrome: MedlinePlus Genetics (National Library of Medicine)
Statistics and Research
- Cancer of the Bone and Joint (National Cancer Institute)
- What's New in Bone Cancer Research? (American Cancer Society) Also in Spanish
Clinical Trials
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Bone Neoplasms (National Institutes of Health)
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Osteosarcoma (National Institutes of Health)
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Sarcoma, Ewing (National Institutes of Health)
Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
- Article: Long term survival in adult osteosarcoma patients treated with a two-drug...
- Article: Bone Pain and Survival Among Patients With Metastatic, Hormone-Sensitive Prostate Cancer:...
- Article: Osteolytic Bone Metastasis: Different Radiotherapy Fractionation Schedules Compared Clinically and Radiographically.
- Bone Cancer -- see more articles
Find an Expert
- American Cancer Society
- Choosing a Cancer Doctor (American Cancer Society) Also in Spanish
- National Cancer Institute Also in Spanish
Children
- Childhood Cancer: Osteosarcoma (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
- Childhood Chordoma Treatment (National Cancer Institute) Also in Spanish
Patient Handouts
- After chemotherapy - discharge (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Bone lesion biopsy (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Bone tumor (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Ewing sarcoma (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Osteosarcoma (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish