What Are The Symptoms of Bone Cancer?

Cancer of the bones is usually rare. In most cases for adults, bone cancer results as another cancer that started in a different part of the body spreads or begins as a side effect of cancer treatments.

When Adults Have Bone Cancer

While it is uncommon, it isn’t unheard of for an adult to develop bone cancer. Most younger adults and children develop cancer in the longer bones of the legs and arms and is categorized as osteosarcoma. It develops in the cells of the bones. For elderly adults, the most common type of bone cancer is chondrosarcoma. This cancer develops in the bones and surrounding tissues of the hip, pelvis, and shoulder.

Symptoms That Could Be Related to Bone Cancer

If your loved one displays any of these symptoms or if you or his senior home care providers notice these changes, he should visit his primary doctor to discover the cause. While many of these symptoms can also be related to other conditions, they might also indicate he has bone cancer.

Bone Pain

Bone pain is unique in that there seems to be nothing causing it. It stems from the inside. It is often described as a deep, persistent pain in which finding relief from it seems nearly impossible. Most over-the-counter pain reducers don’t help. It often gets worse at night or while being active.

Swelling Around the Affected Area

The area affected may feel tender to the touch and be swollen. It can hurt for your loved one to sit if it is in his hips or it can hurt to lean back in a chair if it’s in his shoulder.

A bump

Sometimes a lump or bump can be felt on the affected area where the cancer has formed.

Extreme fatigue

Your loved one may find himself unable to gather up the energy needed to do regular daily tasks. If he’s increasing the amount of help he requests from his senior home care providers, it might be that he’s physically unable to muster up the energy needed to do routine tasks.

Weight Loss

If you or your senior home care team has noticed that your loved one is losing weight without trying, it could be due to bone cancer. Cancer cells require a lot of energy and take that energy from your loved one’s body even when he’s at rest, causing him to expend more energy than the calories he’s consumed for the day.

Easily broken bones

Since bone cancer weakens bones, the first time your loved one may notice he has a problem is when he breaks a bone from a simple fall. The weakened bones will not be able to sustain any type of injury and will break much more easily.

Senior Home Care Can Help During Bone Cancer Treatment

If your loved one gets diagnosed with bone cancer, his doctor will recommend treating it with surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation. All of these will put a considerable physical strain on your loved one as he receives his treatments. Having a senior come care team who can visit and help with personal care needs as well as some light housekeeping chores can help support your loved one as he receives the necessary treatment to help him recover and manage his disease.

If you or an aging loved one are considering senior home care in Hartsdale, NY, please contact the caring staff at Griswold Home Care for Scarsdale & Yonkers today. (914) 337-5028.