Causes of Bone Cancer

Bone cancer may sound like an uncommon diagnosis, but it claims more lives each year than many of us realize. With a higher incidence among young adults and children, bone cancer is something that deserves to be taken seriously – and understood more deeply. In this article, we’ll cover everything you need to know about the common causes of bone cancer and its risk factors, which will ultimately help you better understand this condition so you can take better care of your health.

How is Bone cancer caused?

Cancer occurs when the cells in a certain area of the body divide and multiply too rapidly in an uncontrolled manner that results in the formation of a lump of tissue known as a tumour. Experts are not certain about the exact causes of bone cancer, but certain factors can increase the chances of developing the condition, including:

• Receiving radiotherapy treatment in the past: If a person is exposed to high doses of radiation in the past during radiotherapy treatment, it may cause cancerous changes in the bone cells at a later stage, although the chances for this are very low.
• Bone conditions: In some cases, non-cancerous or benign conditions affecting the bones may increase the chances of developing bone cancer, like a condition called Paget’s disease of the bone that is known to increase the chances of bone cancer development in people over 50 to 60 years of age.
• Cancer treatment: A person is more likely to get a tumour in the bones if he had any treatment like stem cell transplants or received chemotherapy drugs to treat other types of cancers.
• Rare genetic conditions: Some rare genetic conditions, such as Li-Fraumeni syndrome, cause tumours to grow in the bones, thus increasing the risk of getting bone cancer.
• Other conditions: If a person is born with a rare form of eye cancer known as retinoblastoma, he may be more likely to develop bone cancer. This is because the same inherited faulty gene can be responsible for both retinoblastoma and later stages of bone cancer.

Conclusion

It has been estimated that the survival rate for bone cancer patients is about 5-year, depending on the location and the stage of cancer after the first diagnosis. Bone cancer treatments can cause problems with time in the heart, lungs, brain, hearing, bones, or fertility. So, it is always advisable to visit a doctor to get regular check-ups and PET scans to detect the disease at its earliest stage and proceed with a treatment option after assessing all risks based on the stage of bone cancer detected. Understanding the causes of cancer cancer can help a person prevent this severe condition. Also, ensure that you have a health insurance plan in place to safeguard yourself against any financial stress.

Disclaimer: the above blog aims to provide general information about health and related topics. Any information provided in this blog, website or in any linked materials is not intended and should not be considered, or used as a substitute for any medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. It is important that you contact your doctor before starting a new medicine or health regime.