Does osteosarcoma hurt when pressed?

Written by Li Jie
Orthopedics
Updated on December 06, 2024
00:00
00:00

Osteosarcoma, also known as osteogenic sarcoma, is a primary malignant tumor of the bone. It ranks second in incidence among bone tumors and has a relatively high incidence and malignancy rate. It is more common in adolescents and occurs more frequently in males than in females. The earliest clinical symptoms of this disease include dull pain and persistent pain that worsens with activity, as well as nighttime pain, which is more pronounced than daytime pain. This is a very important characteristic, indicating that patients experience nighttime pain and rest pain. The affected area may develop a rapidly growing mass that changes significantly in size from month to month. If the tumor grows large, pressing on it can cause pain, but in the early stages when the tumor is not very large, the tenderness may not be very apparent, presenting only as localized spontaneous pain, which requires attention.

Other Voices

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Wang Cheng Lin
Orthopedics
50sec home-news-image

Does osteosarcoma require amputation?

Do osteosarcomas require amputation? In the past, the likelihood of amputation for treating osteosarcoma was very high. However, currently, the rate of amputation is very low, and the limb-salvage rate is very high. This is due to a new chemotherapy protocol in medical practice, which involves initial chemotherapy followed by surgery, and then continued chemotherapy post-operatively. The limb-salvage rate with this treatment plan can reach about 75% to 80%. Therefore, currently, most osteosarcoma patients do not require amputation. Unlike the past, where amputation rates were very high, today's medical approach is very advanced, generally resulting in a very high rate of limb preservation for osteosarcoma patients.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Li Jie
Orthopedics
1min 9sec home-news-image

Symptoms of osteosarcoma recurrence

Osteosarcoma is a relatively common type of malignant bone tumor, ranking second in incidence among malignant bone tumors. Typically, upon the development of osteosarcoma, surgery is required to scrape out the tumor focus, followed by limb-sparing or amputation surgery. Additionally, adjuvant radiotherapy and chemotherapy are employed. Generally, the local area may be maintained for a period, but the disease is prone to recurrence. There may be local recurrence at the site of surgery or distant recurrence, meaning tumor cells might seed and lead to tumors in other locations. Symptoms of both local and distant recurrences are similar to those at the initial onset, generally including significant pain, night pain, and rest pain. There will also be distinct X-ray signs of osteosarcoma in the bone. Furthermore, osteosarcoma may metastasize to the lungs, potentially causing symptoms such as cough, bloody sputum, phlegm, and fever—typical signs of intrapulmonary tumors. These are some of the common symptoms associated with the recurrence of osteosarcoma.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Na Hong Wei
Orthopedics
58sec home-news-image

Osteosarcoma mainly metastasizes through

The main metastatic pathways of osteosarcoma are generally divided into three types. The first is hematogenous spread, which refers to the dispersal of tumor cells throughout the body via the bloodstream, typically settling in areas with slower blood flow which facilitates the deposition of these cells leading to local changes. The second is direct implantation, which involves tumor cells directly establishing themselves in the vicinity of the tumor's common sites, eventually leading to local metastasis. The third type is lymphatic spread, where tumor cells migrate through the lymphatic system, spreading along lymphatic vessels or pathways. Therefore, the main metastatic pathways of osteosarcoma are these three types. The primary sites of metastasis for osteosarcoma are mainly the lungs, but metastases can also occur in the brain or through other mechanisms.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Guan Jing Tao
Orthopedics
50sec home-news-image

How to alleviate the pain of osteosarcoma?

Pain in osteosarcoma patients is mostly caused by the cancer invading local bone tissue and other tissues, leading to pain, tenderness, and even sleeplessness. Therefore, the pain management follows a certain hierarchy, starting with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, followed by weak opioids, and finally strong opioids such as morphine. However, this only alleviates the pain and does not help with treatment. For early-stage osteosarcoma patients, pain management primarily involves surgery when necessary. For advanced-stage patients, it involves gradually increasing the dose of effective pain-relief medications to alleviate temporary pain. (Controlled drugs must be strictly used under the supervision of relevant physicians.)

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Na Hong Wei
Orthopedics
1min 3sec home-news-image

Symptoms of osteosarcoma

The common symptoms of osteosarcoma include, first, pain which is often persistent, typically occurring at the distal femur, proximal tibia, and proximal humerus. The characteristic of this pain is that it worsens at night, more severe than during the day. Second, there is local swelling usually near joints, particularly at the three aforementioned common sites. The skin over the swelling often becomes warm and may even show redness, and some patients may have dilated surface veins. The swelling can frequently cause dysfunction of nearby joints, or restricted function. Third, systemic symptoms primarily include a persistent wasting syndrome, known as cachexia. Fourth, osteosarcomas can weaken the bone's load-bearing capacity and strength following cortical bone involvement, eventually leading to pathological fractures. Therefore, the main symptoms of osteosarcoma are localized pain, local swellings, systemic manifestations of cachexia, or pathological fractures.