What is Bone Cancer?

Bones are hollow structures filled with red spongy bone marrow that produces blood cells.

Bone consists of collagen fibres, fibrous tissue, calcium phosphate, and minerals that harden the structure and bone cells. The bone cells are of three types:

• Osteoclasts – Cells that break and remove old bone.
• Osteoblasts – Cells that build new bones.
• Osteocytes – Cells that carry nutrients to bones.

Also Read: Symptoms based on Cancer types

Bone Sarcoma

Cancer can begin in any part of the bone. It starts when the normal cells grow out of control to form tumors ^​1​. 

A bone tumour can be benign or malignant. 

A tumour is malignant when it starts spreading to distant parts of the body. A malignant tumour can destroy bone, and if it enters the bloodstream, it can reach other parts of the body, particularly the lungs, by metastasis.

A benign tumour remains confined to its original location and doesn’t spread to other body parts. The benign tumour can grow large and press the surrounding tissue causing the bone to fracture. 

Different connective tissue cancer in bones are ^​2​ – 

• Chondrosarcoma – It is the cancer of cartilage commonly in adults.
• Chordoma – This bone sarcoma starts in the part of the spinal cord. 
• Ewing sarcoma and osteosarcoma – They occur mainly in children and adults. 

Primary bone sarcoma (cancer that begins in the bone) is less common ^​3​. It is more common for cancers like breast, lung or prostate to spread to the bone and is called metastatic cancer, not bone cancer or sarcoma.  

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