Bone metastases
Bone metastases are cancerous growths that often form in the spine, hips, or long bones in the arms and legs. They happen when solid tumoursfrom other parts of the body, like the breast, prostate, lung, or kidneys, spread (metastasise) to the bones.
▪️Bone metastases can also cause symptoms such as pain, fractures, or high calcium levels in the blood (hypercalcemia).
Bone metastases happen when cancer cells break off from the original tumour (for example, in breast, prostate, lung, or kidney cancer) and travel through the bloodstream to the bones. Once these cells reach the bones, they start to grow and form new cancerous growths, which are separate from the original tumour.
Bone metastases are diagnosed using imaging tests like CT or MRI scans, which are used to see and create images of the inside of your body.
Sometimes, a biopsy (a small tissue sample) is taken to confirm the diagnosis.
▫️Bone metastases can be treated with percutaneous ablation, a minimally invasive treatment that uses extreme cold or heat to destroy the tumour. This treatment can completely or partially destroy the tumour and help reduce pain.
▫️Bone consolidation treatments are also used if the metastasis causes a bone fracture, which can include (cementoplasty) or (screw-mediated osteosynthesis).
▫️For bone metastases in the long bones (in your arms and legs), surgery with a special nail can be used to fix the bone.
Some common risks of treatment include bleeding, bruising, injury to nearby nerves, or infections. After bone ablation, the bone might break again if it isn’t properly treated to heal along with the ablation.
Follow-up care with your doctors will be planned with you. This follow-up may include checking your symptoms or using imaging tests to see how well the treatment worked. Your doctor will discuss the next steps based on your results and progress.
This page contains general medical information. The information is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment