For cancer patients, "metastasis" is the word they least want to hear, which means the worsening of the cancer condition, the increase in the difficulty of treatment, and even directly affects the survival period. According to statistics, as many as 90% of cancer patients, their deaths are related to cancer metastasis, and the various complications brought by metastasis will also make cancer patients extremely painful.
Among them, bones are common metastasis sites for advanced malignant tumors, and are more common in malignant tumors such as breast cancer , lung cancer, prostate cancer , gastric cancer , kidney cancer , cervical cancer and other malignant tumors. Among them, the proportion of bone metastasis in breast cancer is 65%~75%, prostate cancer is 65%~75%, lung cancer is 30%~40%, renal cancer is 30%, and multiple myeloma is as high as 70%~95%.
Generally, bone metastasis often means that the patient's cancer has developed to the late stage. Systemic symptoms will make the patient mistakenly think that it is caused by a tumor, and it is difficult to associate bone metastasis. The pain caused by bone metastasis to patients is often more serious than the tumor itself. If you have the following four symptoms, beware of bone metastasis.
1, Pain
The most common symptom of bone metastasis is pain. What kind of pain may be bone metastasis of cancer? The pain after bone metastasis in cancer is different from the pain caused by other bone diseases. It is often manifested as soreness, swelling and tingling, occasionally tearing pain, and mostly dull pain.
Bone metastasis pain area is relatively fixed. After bone metastasis, cancer cells will release a large amount of lytic media in the bones, destroying bone cells. The damaged bone cells will release a large amount of cytokine , further promoting cancer cells to secrete lytic media and leading to a vicious cycle. Thoracic vertebra , lumbar vertebra, and ribs are common bone metastasis sites, local lumps may appear, and the painful areas are relatively fixed.
The degree of bone metastasis pain will gradually worsen. The pain symptoms of early bone metastasis are not obvious, but as the disease develops, the pain will gradually worsen in the middle and late stages or after the metastasis range is further expanded. Often manifested as nighttime pain, recurrent attacks, persistent pain, etc. The metastasis rate of lung cancer reaches more than one-third, and many lung cancer patients only find it after metastasis. There may be no symptoms in the early stage of bone metastasis, and often there will be obvious pain symptoms only in more than one year. Therefore, when lung cancer patients do not have symptoms of bone metastasis, the possibility of bone metastasis cannot be ruled out.
2, other symptoms
Cancer bone metastasis can also easily cause systemic symptoms such as anemia, fatigue, decreased appetite, malnutrition, etc. Because cancer cells constantly destroy human bones, it is very easy to cause hypercalcemia. In the later stage, patients who need to stay in bed for a long time due to general weakness will also experience symptoms such as atelectasis, thrombosis, pressure ulcers, etc.
3, fracture
Some patients with bone metastasis will have fractures. Most patients only found that they had bone metastases when they went to the hospital for fractures. Cancer bone metastasis can lead to bone loss, and bones become fragile due to severe damage. Slight trauma and cough can cause pathological fractures, especially the risk of fractures in the vertebral bones, ribs and other parts is higher.
4, compression symptoms
Bone metastasis may occur in any part of the bones, but clinically, the spine, pelvis, ribs, long bones of the limbs are the most common. When bone metastasis occurs in the spine, it may destroy the vertebrae and form compression on the spinal cord and nerve roots. At this time, patients often experience symptoms such as weakness, pain, regression of limbs, and incontinence. When bone metastasis occurs on the long bones of the limbs, it may also compress blood vessels and nerves, causing movement disorders, joint disorders, etc. When bone metastasis occurs in the pelvic area, compressing the bladder can cause urination and defecation. In addition, bone metastasis on the superficial surface of the limbs can cause swelling, and in severe cases, it will produce lumps and affect the joints.
So, what are the indicators of imaging and blood tests for bone metastasis? What evidence is the most important? The main examination and diagnosis of bone metastasis are imaging (CT, MRI, bone scan , PET-CT, etc.), followed by whether the osteogenic indicator ALP in the blood increases, and whether the cancer indicator (CA125, CA199, CEA, etc.) improves. For example, the increase in PSA in prostate cancer is also a key indicator. In imaging, CT is mainly used to observe the damage of cortical bones or the changes in the seat of bone structure, and MRI is mainly used to observe soft tissue mass and inflammatory response areas. Bone scans mainly look at whether there is local osteogenic reaction. PET-CT mainly depends on whether there is local increase in metabolism, because a large increase in metabolism is often a sign of tumor possibility.
The main purpose of bone metastasis treatment is to reduce bone damage, eliminate bone damage, repair bone structure, prevent further damage to bone structure, and reduce pain caused by bone metastasis. Traditional Chinese medicine is a relatively important method. The treatment of pure Chinese medicine greatly improves the patient's physical fitness, strengthens the foundation, regulates the functions of the five internal organs, and effectively restores the balance of the body's qi and blood. Bone metastasis often leads to a series of complications such as pathological fractures, spinal cord compression, pain, and motor dysfunction. Modern medicine treats tumor bone metastasis methods including chemotherapy, radiotherapy, surgery, radionuclide , diphosphate drugs and painkillers, etc., but the effect of a single treatment method is not ideal, so multidisciplinary comprehensive treatment should be carried out.
In traditional Chinese medicine treatment of bone metastasis, the first thing to consider is how to let patients live a quality life. To control the symptoms and make the patient live a comfortable life, to do this, the first thing is to relieve pain for the patient, and at the same time, traditional Chinese medicine should be used to interfere with the process of bone damage. Bone metastasis is more common in advanced cancer patients, and its pathogenesis is mainly deficiency. However, anti-cancer Western medicines often damage the body's positive energy and cannot tolerate the patient. Therefore, the treatment of bone metastasis should focus on replenishing deficiency and enhancing the body's immunity , so as to achieve the purpose of eliminating cancer toxins. At the same time, traditional Chinese medicine also has a unique role in improving quality of life, restoring bone damage, and extending survival.
