Can hot compresses relieve pain for osteosarcoma?

Written by Guan Jing Tao
Orthopedics
Updated on November 09, 2024
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Osteosarcoma has very limited pain relief effects through simple or pure hot compresses. As the lesion progresses, hot compresses can become completely ineffective or have very unclear effects. Clinical manifestations include pain and swelling, with local formation of lumps or tumor-like appearances. It can also affect the joint mobility around it, and even cause atrophy of limbs and muscles. In terms of treatment, it still relies on early surgical excision, but the prognosis is still not very optimistic.

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The main metastasis pathways of osteosarcoma

Osteosarcoma is a primary tumor of bone tissue. The tumor can metastasize through the bloodstream, lymphatic system, or nearby tissue. The most common site of metastasis for osteosarcoma clinically is to the lungs. Therefore, it is often recommended that patients undergo chest X-rays or even chest CT scans to detect any metastasis to the lungs.

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Is osteosarcoma a cancer?

If we are to speak strictly, osteosarcoma is not cancer. This is because cancer typically refers to malignant tumors of epithelial tissue, whereas osteosarcoma, like all sarcomas, is a malignant tumor that occurs in connective or muscle tissue. Therefore, their origins are different: osteosarcoma is not cancer; it is a malignant tumor that occurs in bone tissue, commonly found in the distal femur, proximal tibia, and proximal humerus. So, strictly speaking, osteosarcoma is a sarcoma, a malignant tumor that occurs in bone tissue. It is not what one would typically refer to as cancer, which usually pertains to epithelial tissues, such as in cases of skin cancer or breast cancer. Osteosarcoma is therefore classified as a sarcoma, not as cancer.

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Postoperative recurrence symptoms of osteosarcoma

Symptoms of recurrent osteosarcoma after surgery are generally consistent with the symptoms before the initial surgery. The main symptoms include: Firstly, localized pain, which is persistent, progressive, and does not alleviate, including pain that worsens at night. Secondly, localized swelling, which usually occurs around the surgical site if limb-sparing surgery was performed, or at the stump if amputation was done. Thirdly, the appearance of systemic cachexia and symptoms of metastasis. Systemic cachexia typically includes weight loss, anemia, fatigue, and loss of appetite. For osteosarcoma, metastasis primarily targets the lungs, where numerous cancerous shadows can be detected. Thus, the main recurrent symptoms of osteosarcoma after surgery include pain, swelling, and cachexia.

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Osteosarcoma bone metastasis symptoms

The symptoms of osteosarcoma metastasis, osteosarcoma most commonly metastasizes to the lungs. If pulmonary metastasis occurs, there are at least two prominent characteristics. The first is that most metastatic tumors are located on the surface of the lungs and are rarely within the lung parenchyma, thus, they are not difficult to detect. The second point is that most metastatic tumors predominantly present as multiple bilateral lung metastases. Isolated unilateral lung metastasis is very rare. Therefore, this characteristic determines that osteosarcoma lung metastasis can only be managed with local wedge-shaped or segmental lung resections as the basic comfort measure. In fact, this simple surgical approach often allows for complete removal of the metastatic tumors while preserving most of the normal lung tissue.

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incidence of osteosarcoma

Osteosarcoma, also known as osteogenic sarcoma, is a primary malignant tumor of the bone and has a relatively high incidence rate. Among primary bone tumors, the incidence of osteosarcoma is second only to plasma cell myeloma, ranking second. Osteosarcoma typically occurs in tubular bones, commonly affecting the rapidly growing metaphyseal regions. The distal femur, proximal tibia, and proximal humerus are the most frequently affected sites. Between 50%-70% of all cases occur around the knee joint. The common age range for this disease is between 10 to 20 years old, with a higher prevalence in males than in females.