Bone Cancer Treatment Guidelines

[Mary]

These guidelines are used at the best cancer centers around the country. They are useful to educate patients in every stage of care, from diagnosis to follow-up.

http://abc-survivors.net/images/bone.pdf

[Julia]

Pretty handy info to have and perfect timing!! Thanks!

[Larisa]

Interesting document. I wonder how to better interpret the following statement about Ewing's on p. 19:
 "Patients responding to primary treatment should always be treated
further with adjuvant chemotherapy following local control treatment
(surgery or radiation therapy), regardless of surgical margins. The
panel strongly recommends that chemotherapy should be given for a
total of 36 weeks including that received prior to local therapy (category
1)."

Does it mean that 36/3=12 chemotherapy treatments is enough?

[Mary]

Larisa, this is a great question, and I definitely don't know the answer. This is why I hope that patients will print out the guidelines if they have questions and ask their physicians. The guidelines can be especially useful for patients who are not being treated at a top sarcoma center or by a doctor who sees a high volume of bone sarcoma patients. If nothing else, a patient can always ask, "It looks like there is a difference between what you're doing and what the NCCN Guidelines recommend. Can you explain your reasoning so that I understand my treatment better?" Hopefully there is sound reasoning as to why a doctor is using a different approach.

Of course, your physician may be surprised that you have these and that you know what a lot of it means, but hey, it's good to be educated!!!