What are the symptoms of osteosarcoma in young people

The incidence of osteosarcoma is mostly among young people. Recently, the number of cases of osteosarcoma has increased rapidly, seriously affecting the health of many young people. People have paid more attention to osteosarcoma. Early detection and timely treatment are the best preventive measures. The early stages of the disease are often invisible to everyone. So let us learn about the symptoms of osteosarcoma in young people.

Osteosarcoma is the most common type of bone malignancy. It develops from the mesenchymal cell line. The rapid growth of the tumor is due to the direct or indirect formation of tumor bone-like tissue and bone tissue through the cartilage stage.

"Osteosarcoma" refers to a tumor that grows on the bone, which can be benign or malignant. Among them, "primary malignant bone tumor" is the most harmful to the human body. "Osteosarcoma" is the most common primary malignant bone tumor, which is more common in adolescents aged 8-25 years old, with a peak incidence of 15 years old. There is no obvious difference in the incidence between boys and girls, which seriously threatens the lives of adolescents. At present, the medical community is still unclear about the cause of "osteosarcoma". However, experts believe that injuries, chronic infections, radiation damage and certain genetic factors may be related to the onset of "osteosarcoma". "Osteosarcoma" often occurs in the limbs, develops rapidly, has a short course of disease, and can metastasize to the bloodstream in the early stages. At present, the incidence of this disease accounts for 15 to 20 percent of childhood tumors.

1. Primary osteosarcoma mostly grows in the limbs, and adolescents are the most susceptible group, which may be related to the variation of bones during growth. The difficulty in treatment is recurrence and metastasis. Comprehensive treatment can prolong the patient's survival time.

2. Secondary bone tumors are more common in the axial skeleton and pelvis. Early treatment can improve the patient's quality of life. After comprehensive treatment, the 5-year survival rate of primary osteosarcoma patients can reach 60% to 70%, and the recurrence rate is less than 5%. The 2-year survival rate is more than 90%, and more than 95% of patients have their survival extended.

Clinical manifestations of osteosarcoma

The clinical emphasis of osteosarcoma is on early diagnosis and early treatment. However, due to the lack of knowledge about the disease and the lack of obvious early clinical symptoms, 60% of patients are already in the middle or late stages when they seek medical treatment, and 50% of patients are delayed in their disease progression due to the lack of timely diagnosis and standardized treatment.

1. Pain

Pain of varying degrees at the tumor site is a common symptom of osteosarcoma, caused by the expansion of tumor tissue destroying the bone cortex and stimulating the periosteal nerve endings. The pain can develop from intermittent in the early stage to persistent after a few weeks, and the degree of pain can increase. Initially, it is intermittent pain, which gradually worsens and turns into persistent pain after a period of time. It is more obvious at night and is ineffective when taking painkillers.

2. Lump

As the disease progresses, local swelling may occur, and a lump may be touched at the painful part of the limb, accompanied by obvious tenderness. If the lump grows rapidly, the lump can be found from the appearance. The skin temperature on the surface of the lump increases and the superficial veins are exposed. The surface of the lump and the nearby soft tissue may have varying degrees of tenderness. Due to the different degrees of ossification, the hardness of the lump varies. Swelling and lumps will appear after a few days or weeks, and varicose veins will appear in the late stage, and the local skin temperature will increase and congestion and redness will occur.

3. Limping

The pain-avoiding claudication caused by limb pain worsens as the disease progresses. Patients with a long illness period may experience limited joint movement and muscle atrophy. Some patients may develop joint effusions or even pathological fractures.

4. General condition

When the diagnosis is confirmed, the general condition is generally poor, manifested by fever, malaise, weight loss, anemia and even exhaustion. In some cases, the tumor grows very quickly and metastasizes to the lungs at an early stage, causing the general condition to deteriorate. Pathological fractures at the tumor site make the symptoms more obvious.

Early detection of osteosarcoma

The early symptoms of osteosarcoma are very hidden. Many patients are accidentally discovered after a fall or a collision with a minor trauma. Some children will suddenly tell their families that their legs hurt, and the pain next to the knee joint. These places have no trauma, no redness or swelling, no pain when pressed, and normal movement. This requires a good distinction from "growing pains".

The occurrence of "growing pains" is mostly due to the fact that children are relatively active, their bones grow faster, and the growth and development of local muscles and tendons are not coordinated, resulting in physiological pain. However, this pain usually eases after one or two days and is mild.

The pain caused by osteosarcoma cannot be relieved. Generally, a lump will swell up on one leg, which is very full and will not get smaller, but only bigger.

Diagnostic principles of "primary osteosarcoma":

1. Look at the symptoms: If it grows on the legs, leg pain and swelling may occur.

2. Look at imaging films: such as CT and MRI, which have typical manifestations of osteosarcoma.

3. Look at the biopsy pathological diagnosis: the presence of tumor cells in the biopsy is the key diagnostic information.

The diagnosis of osteosarcoma is not difficult. Its early symptoms are pain, which is intermittent at first and gradually turns into continuous severe pain, especially at night. Experienced doctors can make a correct diagnosis for 70% of patients through clinical manifestations and X-ray examinations. When young people have symptoms such as pain and swelling near the bone ends of the knee joint, they should especially consider the possibility of osteosarcoma. If the doctor lacks experience, it is often easy to miss or misdiagnose the disease in the early stages.