E-mail pageBone Cancer
Bone cancer can be extremely painful and frightening for the children and adults that it strikes. However, the latest treatments available at the University of Chicago Medical Center--from innovative chemotherapy to bone transplants--can help reduce pain, fight the disease, and preserve the ability to walk, work or play.
Our orthopaedic oncology team--which includes respected experts in orthopaedic surgery, oncology, and other specialties--works together to design the best treatment for each patient, which may include:
- Limb-sparing surgeries
- Chemotherapy
- Radiation--either external radiation or brachytherapy
- Radiofrequency ablation--surgeons use heat to destroy cancerous tissue
- Immunotherapy (for melanoma)--our team uses drugs and laboratory techniques to activate the body's own immune system to attack cancer cells
- Cytokine therapy--we use drugs called cytokines to fight kidney cancer that has spread to the bone
- Participation in clinical trials
For information about bone cancer and sarcoma care for infants, children, teens and young adults, visit the Pediatric Sarcomas page on the University of Chicago Comer Children's Hospital Web site. There you'll find information about the following cancer types:
Expert Surgeons
When surgery is needed, it can be comforting to know that University of Chicago orthopedic surgeons are nationally recognized for their expertise in treating bone cancer and reconstructing the musculoskeletal system. Whenever possible, our surgeons use limb-sparing techniques, which involve replacing cancerous bone with bone grafts or artificial implants. Our surgeons are especially skilled at saving limbs when tumors are large or difficult to remove. Our surgeons are also experts in bone and joint replacement techniques--and have even designed prostheses used across the country. When amputation is necessary, our surgeons are able to maximize your ability to function normally following surgery.
Tailored, Combination Therapies
The best bone cancer treatments combine several types of therapies. For example, our surgeons, oncologists, and radiation therapists work together to improve the success rates of bone cancer surgery by using chemotherapy treatments prior to surgery.
In addition, our orthopaedic oncologists care for patients with bone tumors and fractures that are caused by lung, breast, prostate, thyroid and kidney cancer. Our physicians provide the most advanced forms of chemotherapy and radiation available. In fact, they are involved in developing, refining, and testing the latest drug and radiation treatments. For example, we participated in a unique multi-center study that examined the effect of gene therapy and radiation on soft-tissue sarcomas (tumors).
Ongoing Research
Patients at the University of Chicago Medical Center are often among the first in the area to hear about and benefit from new bone cancer approaches. As researchers, our physicians are involved in studies of possible new bone cancer treatments and diagnostic approaches. For example, our pediatric and adult oncologists are active participants in national cooperative cancer study groups and design treatments based on the groups' latest research findings. Today, these groups are investigating immune therapies, antiangiogenesis agents, and bisphosphonate therapy (using drugs to prevent bone metastases, relieve bone pain, and prevent loss of bone strength). In addition, our orthopaedic surgeons are designing bone and joint replacement implants that will improve our ability to reconstruct damaged limbs.
