Cancer that starts in a bone is rare. Cancer that has spread to the bone from another part of the body is more common.
There are three types of bone cancer:
- Osteosarcoma - develops in growing bones, usually between ages 10 and 25
- Chondrosarcoma - starts in cartilage, usually after age 50
- Ewing's sarcoma - begins in nerve tissue in bone marrow of young people, often after treatment of another condition with radiation or chemotherapy
The most common symptom of bone cancer is pain. Other symptoms may 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.
National Cancer Institute
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Bone Cancer: Questions and Answers(National Cancer Institute) - http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Sites-Types/bone
Also available in Spanish http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Sites-Types/bone-spanish
- Detailed Guide: Bone Cancer(American Cancer Society) - http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/CRI_2_3x.asp?dt=2
- Bone Cancer(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/bone-cancer/DS00520/DSECTION=all&METHOD=print
- Bone Tumor(American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons) - http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=A00074&return_link=0
- Bone Cement Eases Pain of Late-Stage Cancers(03/09/2009, HealthDay) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_81461.html
- Bone Markers(American Association for Clinical Chemistry) - http://www.labtestsonline.org/understanding/analytes/bone_markers/glance.html
- Bone Scan(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/bone-scan/MY00306/METHOD=print&DSECTION=all
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Glossary of Orthopaedic Diagnostic Tests(American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons) - http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=A00272
Also available in Spanish http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=A00492
- Bone and Tissue Transplantation(American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons) - http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=A00115
- Bone Sarcoma in the Upper Extremity: Treatment Options Using Limb Salvage or Amputation(American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons) - http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=A00092
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Ewing's Family of Tumors (PDQ): Treatment(National Cancer Institute) - http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/treatment/ewings/patient/
Also available in Spanish http://www.cancer.gov/espanol/pdq/tratamiento/ewing/patient/
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Osteosarcoma/Malignant Fibrous Histiocytoma of Bone (PDQ): Treatment(National Cancer Institute) - http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/treatment/osteosarcoma/Patient
Also available in Spanish http://www.cancer.gov/espanol/pdq/tratamiento/osteosarcoma
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Vertebroplasty and Kyphoplasty(American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America) - http://www.radiologyinfo.org/en/info.cfm?pg=vertebro&bhcp=1
Also available in Spanish http://www.radiologyinfo.org/sp/info.cfm?pg=vertebro
- Chordoma(American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons) - http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=A00084
- Detailed Guide: Ewing's Family of Tumors(American Cancer Society) - http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/CRI_2_3x.asp?rnav=cridg&dt=48
- Detailed Guide: Osteosarcoma(American Cancer Society) - http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/CRI_2_3x.asp?rnav=cridg&dt=52
- Metastatic Bone Disease(American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons) - http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=A00093
- Myeloma Bone Disease(Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation) - http://www.multiplemyeloma.org/about_myeloma/2.08.php
- Overview: Bone Metastasis(American Cancer Society) - http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/CRI_2_1x.asp?rnav=criov&dt=66
- Atlas of the Body: The Skeleton -- Side View(American Medical Association) - http://www.medem.com/medlib/article/ZZZKBBGBGJC
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Bone Neoplasms(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/condition=%22Bone+Neoplasms%22
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Osteosarcoma(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/condition=%22Osteosarcoma%22
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Sarcoma, Ewing's(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/condition=%22Sarcoma,+Ewing's%22
- Genetics Home Reference: Li-Fraumeni syndrome(National Library of Medicine) - http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition=lifraumenisyndrome
- Experimental Drug for Osteosarcoma Improves Overall Survival(National Cancer Institute) - http://www.cancer.gov/clinicaltrials/results/osteosarcoma0308
- Article: Imaging of sinonasal tumors. - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19388236&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: Bisphosphonates--role in cancer therapies. - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19371811&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: Surgical treatment of metastatic fractures of the femur: a retrospective... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19359930&tool=MedlinePlus
- Bone Cancer -- see more articles - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=(bone+neoplasms[majr]+NOT+(neoplasms,bone+tissue[mh]+OR+osteosarcoma[majr]))+AND+english[la]+AND+humans[mh]+AND+(review[pt]+OR+guideline[pt]+OR+clinical+trial[pt]+OR+jsubsetk[text]+OR+jsubsetaim[text]+OR+jsubsetn[text]+OR+patient+education+handout[pt])+NOT+(letter[pt]+OR+editorial[pt]+OR+case+reports[pt])&doptcmdl=summary&cmd_current=Limits&pmfilter_EDatLimit=last+1+Year&tool=MedlinePlus
- Osteosarcoma and ewing's sarcoma -- see more articles - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=osteosarcoma[majr]+AND+humans[mh]+AND+english[la]+NOT+(letter[pt]+OR+editorial[pt]+OR+case+reports[pt])&doptcmdl=summary&cmd_current=Limits&pmfilter_EDatLimit=last+1+Year&tool=MedlinePlus
- Dictionary of Cancer Terms(National Cancer Institute) - http://www.cancer.gov/dictionary/
- Find an Oncologist(American Society of Clinical Oncology) - http://www.cancer.net/patient/Diagnosis+and+Treatment/Finding+Quality+Care/Find+an+Oncologist/Find+an+Oncologist+Database
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National Cancer Institute Cancer Centers Program(National Cancer Institute) - http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/NCI/cancer-centers
Also available in Spanish http://www.cancer.gov/espanol/instituto/hojas-informativas/programa-centros-oncologicos
- American Cancer Society - http://www.cancer.org/
- National Cancer Institute - http://www.cancer.gov/
- Cancer of the Bone and Joint(National Cancer Institute) - http://seer.cancer.gov/statfacts/html/bones.html
- What Are the Key Statistics about Bone Cancer?(American Cancer Society) - http://www.cancer.org/docroot/cri/content/cri_2_4_1x_what_are_the_key_statistics_for_bone_cancer_2.asp?
- What Are the Key Statistics about Osteosarcoma?(American Cancer Society) - http://www.cancer.org/docroot/cri/content/cri_2_4_1x_what_are_the_key_statistics_for_osteosarcoma_52.asp?
- What Are the Key Statistics about the Ewing Family of Tumors?(American Cancer Society) - http://www.cancer.org/docroot/cri/content/cri_2_4_1x_what_are_the_key_statistics_for_ewings_family_of_tumors_48.asp?
- Childhood Osteosarcoma(American Society of Clinical Oncology) - http://www.cancer.net/patient/Cancer+Types/Osteosarcoma+-+Childhood
- Ewings Family of Tumors - Childhood(American Society of Clinical Oncology) - http://www.cancer.net/patient/Cancer+Types/Ewings+Family+of+Tumors+-+Childhood
- Information for Family and Friends Dealing with Osteosarcoma(Indiana University Cancer Center) - http://www.cancer.iu.edu/osteosarcoma/familyfriends/
- Information for Osteosarcoma Patients(Indiana University Cancer Center) - http://cancer.iu.edu/osteosarcoma//patients/
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Types of Cancer Teens Get(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/diseases_conditions/cancer/types_of_cancer.html
Also available in Spanish http://kidshealth.org/teen/en_espanol/enfermedades/types_of_cancer_esp.html
- Bones, Joints and Muscles - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/bonesjointsandmuscles.html
- Cancers - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/cancers.html
The primary NIH organization for research on Bone Cancer is the National Cancer Institute - http://www.nci.nih.gov/
Bone Cancer - Multiple Languages - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/languages/bonecancer.html