Brief introduction to osteosarcoma

Osteosarcoma mostly occurs in young people under 20 years old. Early detection and early treatment can increase the survival rate. As a malignant tumor, the treatment process inevitably requires chemotherapy, tumor tissue resection, etc. Patients suffer from the disease. Today we will take a look at the brief introduction of osteosarcoma:

Cause: Osteosarcoma is the most common type of malignant bone tumor. 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. Under the influence of external factors (such as viruses), the weight-bearing bones of the lower limbs cause cell mutations, which may be related to the formation of osteosarcoma. The typical osteosarcoma originates from the bone. Another completely different type is the osteosarcoma that is parallel to the bone cortex and originates from the periosteum and nearby connective tissue. The latter is less common and has a slightly better prognosis.

Clinical manifestations The prominent symptom of osteosarcoma is pain at the tumor site, which is caused by the erosion and dissolution of the cortical bone by the tumor tissue. 1. Pain Pain of varying degrees at the tumor site is a very common and obvious symptom of osteosarcoma, caused by the expansion of the tumor tissue destroying the cortical bone and stimulating the periosteal nerve endings. The pain can develop from intermittent in the early stage to continuous after a few weeks, and the degree of pain can be increased. Pain-avoiding claudication may occur in lower limb pain 2. Lump As the disease progresses, local swelling may occur. The lump can 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 of the lump surface 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 different degrees of ossification, the hardness of the lump varies. The enlargement of the lump causes limited joint movement and muscle atrophy. 3. Lameness Pain-avoiding claudication caused by limb pain worsens with the progression of the disease. Patients with a long illness may experience limited joint movement and muscle atrophy. 4. General condition: When the diagnosis is clear, the general condition is generally poor, manifested by fever, malaise, weight loss, anemia and even exhaustion. In some cases, the tumor grows very fast 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.

In the case of osteogenic osteosarcoma, an increase in bone-derived alkaline phosphatase in the blood can be found in the early stage, which is related to the osteogenic effect of the tumor. Pathological diagnosis is the basis for treatment. When considering the diagnosis of osteosarcoma, a biopsy is performed to confirm the pathological examination as soon as possible, which is of great significance for the clear diagnosis and treatment. 1. X-ray film The X-ray manifestation of typical osteosarcoma is that the bone tissue has the characteristics of new bone formation and bone destruction at the same time. The tumor is mostly located at the epiphysis of the long tubular bone, with unclear edges, trabecular destruction, and increased tumor tissue density. After penetrating the cortical bone, the tumor lifts the periosteum, producing the characteristic X-ray sign of the disease-Codman's sleeve triangle (Codman-triangle). This phenomenon can be seen in some patients with osteomyelitis and Ewing's sarcoma, and is very typical in osteosarcoma. In the late stage, the shadow of tumor infiltration of soft tissue can be seen, and pathological fractures can be seen in some cases. 2. CT scan and MRI examination are effective means to determine the nature, extent and presence of surrounding soft tissue infiltration of bone tumors. They can detect metastatic lesions in the lungs and other organs at an early stage and are routine items in the clinical examination of osteosarcoma. 3. Radionuclide bone scanning is a common method for early detection and late identification of metastatic lesions.

Diagnosis can be made based on medical history, clinical manifestations and auxiliary examinations. Osteosarcoma should be differentiated from osteomyelitis and Ewing sarcoma.

Complications of osteosarcoma can cause pain-avoiding claudication, limited joint movement, and muscle atrophy.

Treatment of osteosarcoma is still a disease with a high mortality rate among malignant tumors in children and adolescents, but early detection and timely treatment have greatly improved the survival rate of the disease. After osteosarcoma is pathologically confirmed, early chemotherapy or radiotherapy begins, and the removal of tumor tissue is an important step in the treatment of osteosarcoma. With the improvement of tumor surgical technology and the development of implant research, limb preservation therapy has shown a good treatment prospect. Consolidation chemotherapy or radiotherapy after tumor tissue resection is very important for controlling tumor metastasis and improving survival rate. Radical surgery should be performed for the treatment of osteosarcoma. If conditions permit, local extensive resection can be performed to preserve the limbs. In addition, a biopsy should be performed before amputation. Immunotherapy is intravenous infusion of lymphocytes or interferon and transfer factor, but the efficacy is not yet certain.