Symptoms of Bone Cancer

The bones in our body are made up of cells and if these cells undergoes any kind of problems such as they start growing in an uncontrolled manner, then it can often lead to bone cancer. This usually occurs in the bones of the arms and legs but, it can also take place in the other bones of the body too. The primary bone cancer is one which starts from the bone while secondary bone cancer is said to take place when the cancer spreads from an organ to the bone. Several studies have stated that more than 2000 people suffer from bone cancer every year in the United States. This kind of a malignant cancer can happen to anyone, but it's mainly the children and young who are at a higher risk of suffering from bone cancer than the aged. There are several symptoms of bone cancer which can indicate when a person is suffering from bone cancer and some of the common symptoms have been discussed below.

Bone Cancer Types and Causes

Before we learn about what are the symptoms of bone cancer, let us first learn more about what are the various causes and types of bone cancer. As it has already been mentioned that one of the main cause of bone cancer is the uncontrolled growth of the cells of the bones. The excess growth of these cells forms a tumor which starts affecting the bones which are nearer to the affected bone as well as the other parts of the body as well.

The bone cancer can be of several types. Here are some of the types of this kind of a cancer:

• Osteosarcoma
• Multiple Myeloma
• Chondrosarcoma
• Ewing's Sarcoma
• Malignant Fibrous Histiocytoma
• Chordoma
• Fibrosarcoma.

Now that you know briefly about the causes and types of bone cancer, let us now see what are the symptoms in humans.

Bone Cancer Symptoms

The symptoms of bone cancer varies on the basis of where the cancer has taken place and also depending on the severity of the cancer. One of the most common signs of bone cancer is pain. This pain is the first sign that indicates either primary or secondary bone cancer. The bone cancer pain is a nagging one, deep and often permanent. Sometimes the pain gets so bad, that the person might also suffer from insomnia, where he/she cannot sleep well at night due to the pain. But remember that all bone pain does not mean that the tumor in the bone is cancerous; it could be just a benign tumor as well.

The next bone cancer symptom is the swelling up of the joints or limbs. Fragility of the bone is one important symptom of this cancer in children. The bones becomes weak and fragile and might fracture easily. These are some major symptoms of bone cancer in legs or in any other parts of the body.

Due to the bone cancer or tumor, the calcium from the bone mixes with the blood in the blood stream and this in turn, leads to the increase in the level of calcium in the blood which causes nausea, or abdominal pain, vomiting and even confusion. Thus, these are some other symptoms of bone cancer in hips, legs, arms or other parts of the skeletal structure.

These were some of the most common symptoms of bone cancer. Some people often wonder what is the bone cancer survival rate. Well that depends on the time period since when the cancer has been present and the severity of the cancer. If a person (especially a child) starts showing any of the above symptoms, or if they complain of a pain in the bone, then take them to the doctor immediately, just to be sure.