Osteosarcoma is a the most common form of bone cancer. In this tumor, the cancerous cells produce bone. It is mostly seen in children and young adults. Happening slightly more often in males than in females. Osteosarcoma commonly happens in the long bones, primarily around the knee and followed by the shoulder. If not diagnosed early it will go out of the bone and grow into nearby tissues, such as the blood vessel, muscle, and nerve. It may even spread to distant organs like the lungs and other bones through the bloodstream, and sometimes through the lymph nodes (distant metastasis).
The exact cause is unknown but is postulated to be due to DNA mutations inside the bone, either inherited or acquired after birth. The common symptoms are progressive pain and swelling around the knee or shoulder joints. The child limp with decrease movement of the affected limb. In other cases, pathologic fracture is the initial presentation.
Radiographs or x-ray is the gold standard and often can diagnosed the condition in 80% of cases and usually confirmed by bone biopsy.
To ensure good local tumor control and prevent distant metastasis, treatment is composed of giving chemotherapy before the definitive surgical procedure (neoadjuvant chemotherapy), followed by tumor removal and bone reconstruction (limb-saving procedure), and post-operative chemotherapy (adjuvant chemotherapy). Limb-saving or limb-salvage procedures are performed whenever possible, but in advanced cases, limb amputation is offered to achieve good local tumor control.