The scary thing about cancer is that the cancer cells will run around everywhere, and when the cancer cells run to the bones and wreak havoc, it is the occurrence of cancer "bone metastasis". In fact, any cancer has the possibility of bone metastasis, and the patients will have bone pain like ants gnawing or soreness. The doctor reminded that even if cancer bone metastasis occurs, don't be discouraged, and still need to actively treat to slow down the deterioration, and get back to the bone health and quality of life.
Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital Lung Cancer Convenor Director Wang Jinzhou (right) and Oncology Director Chen Yan Yang (left) said that cancer patients with bone metastases should still be treated actively. (Photo courtesy of Kaohsiung Chang Gung Hospital)One out of every four patients with advanced cancer has bone metastasis, and 65% to 75% of patients with advanced breast cancer have bone metastasis
Director of the Department of Oncology at Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital Yen-Yang Chen said that from the Taiwan Cancer Registry and the prevalence of bone metastasis in various cancers, an average of one out of every four patients with advanced cancer has bone metastasis, especially those with advanced breast cancer. Bone metastasis occurs in one out of every four advanced cancer patients, especially in breast cancer, prostate cancer and lung cancer. In the case of advanced breast cancer, 65% to 75% of patients have bone metastasis; in the case of advanced lung cancer, about 40%; and in the case of advanced prostate cancer, about 35-40% will have bone metastasis.
Bone is the most common site of tumor metastasis, and most of the symptoms in the early stage of metastasis are not obvious and difficult to detect. However, as the disease progresses, the bone structure is eroded and damaged, which may lead to "bone complications", including:
Bone metastasis causes bone complications
1.
Bone pain: Initially, it is a back pain, and the bone pain is like ants gnawing or soreness, which is often mistaken for aging, and is not easy to detect.
2. Pathological fracture: Cancer cells destroy bone metabolism, resulting in fragile bones, which can be easily fractured due to minor collisions.
3. Other complications: spinal compression (manifesting symptoms such as limb pain, numbness, and weakness), hypercalcemia, or the need to undergo bone surgery or radiation therapy as a result.