WHAT RELIEVES SYMPTOMS THE BONE CANCER IS CAUSING?

If a bone cancer grows in the central skeleton, it may not be possible to remove it completely. You may be treated with a combination of surgery and radiation therapy or with radiation therapy alone.

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If your cancer has spread or come back after it was first treated, it may not be possible to get rid of it completely. But it may be possible for your doctor to control the growth of the cancer for a while with radiation therapy and chemotherapy.

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A growing cancer can cause symptoms by pressing on nerves and other body tissues. Secondary bone cancers can be painful. Fortunately, they usually respond very well to radiation therapy. The treatment shrinks the cancer and so relieves the pressure. Radiation therapy can help to strengthen bones weakened by cancer. After the treatment has killed off the cancer cells, the holes in the bone caused by the cancer are repaired by the osteoblasts - the cells in the bones that make the bone framework.