Orthopedic Oncology

The team at Ochsner treats a range of bone cancers and tumors including:

• Multiple myeloma/plasmacytoma: Multiple myeloma is the most common primary bone cancer. This cancer generally develops in older adults and tends to involve the entire skeleton. When only one lesion is found it is called a plasmacytoma.
• Chondrosarcoma: A cancerous tumor made up of cartilage-producing cells that develops in the legs, pelvis or arms of adults. It is the second most common primary malignancy of bone, and one of the most difficult bone tumors to diagnose and treat.
• Osteosarcoma: An aggressive, malignancy that occurs most often in the leg and arm bones of children and young adults.
• Ewing sarcoma: A rare disease in which cancer cells are found in the bone or soft tissue. It is most commonly seen in the legs, pelvis or arms of children and young adults.
• Chondromyxiod fibroma: – A rare, slow-growing, benign bone tumor.
• Enchondroma: A noncancerous bone tumor that begins in cartilage.
• Extra-abdominal desmoid tumor: Deep-seated, benign tumor that can become large and grow into surrounding muscle, tendons, joints and bone.
• Fibrous dysplasia: A chronic condition where scar-like tissue grows in place of normal bone.
• Giant cell tumor of bone: A rare, aggressive non-cancerous tumor that typically occurs in young to middle-aged adults near a joint at the end of the bone.
• Metastatic bone disease cancer: Cancer that begins in an organ and then spreads to the bone.
• Nonossifying fibroma: The most common benign bone cancer in children. They most commonly occur in the femur and tibia.
• Osteochondroma: These common, noncancerous tumors develop during childhood or adolescence.
• Osteoid osteoma: A benign bone tumor that usually develops in the long bones of the body such as the thighbone and shinbone.
• Paget’s disease of bone: A chronic bone disorder that causes bones to become enlarged and deformed.
• Pigmented villonodular synovitis: A joint disease that causes inflammation and overgrowth of the joint lining.
• Soft tissue sarcoma: A form of cancer that begins in the body’s soft tissues, such as the lining of joints, tendons, muscle, fat, blood vessels and nerves.
• Synovial chondromatosis: A rare, benign condition that involves the thin layer of tissue that lines joints.
• Unicameral (simple) bone cyst: Also known as a simple bone cyst, this a fluid-filled cavity in the bone, lined by compressed fibrous tissue. It is usually found in the long bones of children.

The Ochsner Cancer Institute is able to enroll patients in the most recent clinical trials, giving you access to new treatment options.

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Patient referrals, transfers and consults are critically important.

We make it easy for you. To obtain copies of patient records, schedule clinic appointments, and to share your preference for receiving post visit follow-up from your patient's appointment, call the Clinic Concierge, our dedicated physician referral line, at 504-842-7436 or 1-855-312-4190.

Orthopedic oncologists specialize in treating both cancerous and noncancerous bone and soft tissue tumors.

Those can include:

• Bone cancers
• Soft tissue sarcomas
• Cancers that have spread to the bone
• Conditions that occur as a result of cancer or as a side effect of treatment

Yes, an orthopedic oncologist can diagnose and treat patients with cancerous bone tumors.

Bone and soft tissue tumors start in parts of the body’s connective tissue, such as bone, cartilage and fat. When these tumors are malignant, meaning they are cancerous, they are known at sarcomas.

There are different subtypes of bone and soft tissue tumors, depending on which type of tissue the tumor comes from. The most common malignant subtypes include osteosarcoma, Ewing sarcoma, rhabdomyosarcoma and chondrosarcoma. The different tumor types may require substantially different treatment.

Ewing sarcoma is a cancer that occurs primarily in the bone or soft tissue.

Ewing sarcoma can occur in any bone, but is most often found in the hip bones, ribs or in the long bones, such as the femur (thigh), tibia (shin) or humerus (upper arm). It can involve the muscle and the soft tissues around the tumor. Ewing sarcoma cells can also spread, or metastasize, to other areas of the body including the bone marrow, lungs, kidneys, heart, adrenal gland and other soft tissues.

Ewing sarcoma is a rare cancer in adults. However, it accounts for about 1% of childhood cancers. It most often occurs in children between the ages of 10 and 20, and it affects males more often than females.

The staging of bone and soft tissue sarcomas depends on the subtype of the tumor. It can be somewhat complicated.

In general, the size, number and location of the tumors is combined with the pathology results from the tumor biopsy, bone marrow biopsies and the molecular studies and a stage and risk category is assigned. An important distinction for all subtypes is whether the disease is confined to the area of the body in which it started or if it is metastatic in which it has spread to other areas of the body.

Depending on the type and site of the tumor, several techniques may be used to diagnose and stage bone and soft tissue sarcomas. These include:

• Biopsy, a surgical procedure in which a sample is taken of the tumor to determine what type of tissue it is and to run special molecular tests.
• X-rays to evaluate tumors of the bone.
• Magnetic resonance imaging, or MRI, which uses strong magnets and a computer to produce detailed images of soft tissues This is useful in evaluating soft tissue sarcomas.
• Computed tomography, or CT scan, which uses a combination of X-rays and computer to produce images of the body. This is useful for evaluating both bones and soft tissues.
• Radioisotope bone scan, which uses a special “tracer” to evaluate for abnormal areas of bone.
• Positron emission tomography, or PET scan, which uses radioactive sugar injected into a vein to determine if the tumor has spread to other areas of the body.
• Lumbar puncture, in which a sample of fluid is taken from the base of the spine. This is used for certain subtypes of tumors that occur in the head.
• Bone marrow biopsy, in which a small sample of bone marrow is obtained from the hip. This is often performed to determine if the tumor has spread to the bone marrow.