Chondrosarcoma

Diagnosis

The following tests are used for diagnosis of chondrosarcoma:

• Physical Examination: will be performed by the doctor to check for any signs and symptoms.
• Diagnostic Imaging Tests: includes Positron Emission Tomography (PET), Computerized Tomography (CT), and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). This is to determine the extent of the cancer.
• Tissue Biopsy: Involves removing a sample of suspicious issue for examination under a microscope in the laboratory to check for cancer. The biopsy result will also help determine the cell types.

Treatment

The most common type of treatment for chondrosarcoma is surgery. The other treatment options are based on the location, size and how aggressive the cancer is. Your general health condition and treatment choice is also taken into consideration by the doctor when deciding on which treatment to provide.

Surgery

The aim of surgery is to remove all of the cancer as well as some healthy tissue surrounding it, however the surgery will depend on the location of the disease. The removal of the cancer could be a limb-salvage or limb-sparing surgery.

• Scraping the cancer away from the bone. This treatment can be used for slow growing chondrosarcoma in the arms and legs. There could also be a use of cold gas or chemicals in order to destroy the remaining cancer cells, and bone grafting or bone cement can be done to repair the parts that were destroyed.
• Cutting away the cancer and its surrounding healthy tissue. This can be done with the removal of healthy tissues around the tumor. This procedure removes the part of the bone with the cancer or may remove the entire limb and then reconstruction must be done to repair the affected areas.

Chemotherapy

This procedure uses drugs to kill cancer cell. Chemotherapy is generally not effective for chondrosarcoma but may be effective in some fast-growing types of chondrosarcoma.

Radiation therapy

This uses high-energy beams to kill or stop the growth of cancer cells. During the therapy radiation may be directed to one area or other areas of the body affected by the disease. The area that the cancer cannot be completely removed will use this treatment in order to control the spread to other areas.