Spinal cancer: signs and symptoms, treatment and prognosis

Unfortunately, no one is safe from cancer. The most dangerous among them are tumors formed in the spine. What are the symptoms and signs of spinal cancer? Features of diagnosis and treatment are described in the article.

Description

Spinal cancer is always the degeneration of normal body cells into malignant, which begin to grow uncontrollably and form a tumor. It can occur in any part of the spine, in places of cartilaginous joints of the intervertebral discs, as well as in the bone marrow, which is located inside the spinal column.

Growing, a tumor can squeeze parts of the spine, interfere with other organs, thereby causing a large number of concomitant diseases that also worsen a person’s quality of life. Unfortunately, in most cases, spinal cancer is diagnosed in the last stages, when treatment does not lead to the desired result. This is due to the fact that the disease can be almost asymptomatic until the moment when metastases begin to affect nearby and distant organs. For this reason, with any, even the slightest discomfort in the back, you should consult a doctor.

Causes of occurrence

Today it’s quite difficult to say why cancers occur. At the same time, oncologists distinguish several prerequisites that can become an impetus for the degeneration of cells:

1. Hereditary predisposition (if there were or are people with cancer in the family).
2. AIDS virus.
3. Work in hazardous work for a long period of time.
4. Oncological diseases of the circulatory system.
5. Exposure to radioactive radiation.
6. Severe hypothermia of the back or previous severe trauma to the spine.
7. Malnutrition in which a person from an early age does not receive all the necessary vitamins and minerals for the normal development of bones and internal organs.

Also, among the prerequisites for the occurrence of spinal cancer, one can distinguish living in a contaminated region, a violation of metabolic processes in the body, as well as viral infections.

Varieties

The symptoms and signs of spinal cancer may vary slightly depending on where it is located. At the same time, several varieties of oncological diseases of the back are also distinguished:

1. A tumor in the cervical spine is dangerous metastases in the brain, as in a nearby organ, as well as paralysis of the whole body.
2. Malignant neoplasms in the thoracic spine can have complications in organs such as the heart and lungs.
3. A tumor in the lumbar region is dangerous, since the first signs and symptoms of spinal cancer in this section resemble manifestations of rheumatoid arthritis.
4. The oncological process developing in the sacral region is no less dangerous, since the possibility of paralysis of the lower extremities is likely.

According to the characteristics of the tumor, these types of cancer are distinguished:

1. Chondrosarcoma of the spine is the most common type of ridge oncology. It is formed from intervertebral cartilage and is localized in the lumbar or sacral region. Often occurs in men after 40 years. Unfortunately, this type of cancer is incurable, and therapy is reduced to suppressing the growth and activity of the tumor.
2. Osteogenic sarcoma develops inside the vertebrae. Its characteristic feature is the rapid development and rapid defeat of nearby organs with metastases. With timely diagnosis, it is well treatable.
3. Myeloma is a bone marrow cancer that also affects the nerve tissue of the spine. Most often localized in the thoracic spine.
4. Chondroma - characterized by high aggressiveness, often affects nearby soft tissues. Place of localization - lumbar.
5. Ewing's sarcoma is a bone marrow cancer that is often diagnosed in children under the age of 18.
6. Plasmocytoma is a multiple myeloma that has a more favorable prognosis for recovery.

Often a tumor occurs in the lumbar or thoracic spine. The cervical and sacral are much less likely to be affected. In all cases, the cancer is prone to metastasis to nearby organs.

Stages of the disease

Signs and symptoms of spinal cancer largely depend on the stage of development of the disease. They are distinguished 4:

1. At the first stage, the tumor is just beginning to form, it still does not have characteristic symptoms by which it can be determined. Related to this are the difficulties of diagnosing at this stage of development. If it is still detected, then the treatment is successful in 90% of cases.
2. The second stage is characterized by the growth of the tumor and its germination in the surrounding tissue. With timely initiation of therapy, the success of the event is 70%.
3. The third stage is manifested by the appearance of characteristic symptoms and the occurrence of metastases in closely located organs. In this case, the size of the tumor also increases. Treatment is successful in 30% of cases.
4. The fourth stage is manifested in multiple metastasis to distant organs, a large tumor size. Unfortunately, stage 4 spinal cancer is incurable. Therefore, therapy boils down to relieving symptoms and general condition.

It is impossible to say exactly how long the tumor from the first stage reaches the next. In many respects, it depends on its variety, a specific person, as well as on the diagnosis, which leads to timely treatment.

Symptoms

As already known, spinal cancer begins to appear from the second stage of the disease. In this case, a person feels such symptoms and manifestations of spinal cancer:

1. Pain that most often occurs in the morning. They signal that the tumor has touched the nerve fibers.
2. Curvature of the spine at the location of the neoplasm. Such neoplasms lead to the appearance of an intervertebral hernia.
3. Neuralgia or even complete paralysis, if the tumor is located in the cervical spine, can signal a blockage and destruction of nerve fibers.
4. Violations of the functions of the internal organs, near which the neoplasm is located. In the cervical spine - this is the brain, in the chest - the heart and lungs, in the lumbar there is a violation of the motor function of the lower extremities, in the sacral it threatens with bowel movements, urinary incontinence and sexual dysfunction.

At the last stage, when the tumor breaks down, a person feels the following symptoms:

1. Cancer intoxication, or poisoning of the body by the decay products of the tumor. It is characterized by headache, nausea, frequent vomiting, problems with bowel movements. A grayish skin tone appears.
2. Acute pain, which is very difficult to stop, in the area of ​​tumor formation.
3. Aversion to food with vomiting, which leads to exhaustion of the body.

In addition, with metastasis to the internal organs, specific symptoms of concomitant diseases appear.

Diagnostics

In order to establish an accurate diagnosis, it is recommended to contact the appropriate specialists. How to identify spinal cancer? The following symptoms should alert doctors:

• rapid weight loss;
• lower back pain when bending or in other parts of the spine;
• lack of vitality;
• sleep disturbances.

To diagnose cancer, the following methods are used today:

1. Magnetic resonance imaging or computed tomography.
2. An X-ray of spinal cancer will help determine the location of the tumor.
3. Fine needle biopsy when it comes to bone marrow damage. It will help determine which tumors are malignant and which are benign.
4. Histological examination of tissue taken during a biopsy for the detection of malignant cells.

Can a blood test be used to determine cancer? For this, in conjunction with other studies, a blood test is performed for tumor markers - specific antibodies that are formed in physiological fluid in this disease.

They can show the presence of an oncological process in the body. Is it possible to determine cancer by blood tests, guided only by their results? No, unfortunately, tests for tumor markers are sometimes mistaken if their blood levels are not high enough. For this reason, the diagnosis of the disease should be carried out comprehensively with the advice of oncologists and related narrow specialists.

Principles of Therapy

Various symptoms and manifestations of spinal cancer, which indicate the presence of a disease, require diagnosis and treatment. Moreover, it is assigned taking into account the following factors:

• tumor formation zone;
• neoplasm size;
• stage of development of the disease;
• the presence or absence of metastasis to internal organs;
• patient age;
• general condition of the patient’s body;
• the presence of a history of chronic diseases.

Special conditions such as pregnancy or recent surgery are also considered.

Chemotherapy

If the symptoms of the disease, as well as the results of the examination indicate that the patient has an oncological disease, then the treatment should be comprehensive. The first thing prescribed is chemotherapy for spinal cancer, which aims to suppress the growth of cancer cells and destroy them.

The essence of chemotherapy drugs is that toxic and poisonous substances that negatively affect cells are introduced into the body. Unfortunately, along with cancer, they also damage healthy ones, which explains the poor health of patients undergoing treatment. For the same reason, there are categories of cancer patients who are not shown chemotherapy. Contraindications may be as follows:

• pregnancy;
• if there is a very strong depletion of the body;
• decompensated diabetes mellitus;
• anemia;
• allergic reactions to drug components;
• some mental disorders.

In spinal cancer, chemotherapy is not the main treatment method, but only an auxiliary one. Since it has many side effects, which include nausea and vomiting, before starting a person is shown taking antiemetic drugs. Unfortunately, such treatment is far from harmless, so the patient may feel such side effects:

• headache;
• nosebleeds due to damage to the mucous membrane;
• exacerbation of chronic diseases;
• weakening of the immune system, as a result of which a person becomes more susceptible to viral and bacteriological diseases.

Also, many patients report hair loss.

Radiation therapy

This form of cancer treatment is often used at those stages of the disease that are characterized by the appearance of metastasis to internal organs. It is also effective in the localization of tumors in an inaccessible place, which is difficult to get during a surgical operation. In addition, it is noted that in the terminal stage of cancer, this form of treatment also helps to relieve lower back pain when leaning and other painful sensations that are associated with the disease.

As in the case of chemotherapy, the following factors are absolute contraindications for conducting:

• pregnancy;
• exhaustion of the body;
• intoxication caused by the process of decay of the tumor;
• the presence of infectious diseases;
• violation of the integrity of the skin in the field of therapy.

Modern equipment allows you to control the radiation intensity, which minimizes the negative impact on nearby internal organs and soft tissues.

Conservative treatment

This therapy is not the main one for cancer, but it is aimed at minimizing the unpleasant or painful sensations that accompany oncology. At the same time, such treatment is also prescribed if there are secondary diseases caused by metastasis to internal organs or when an infection is connected.

Conservative treatment is as follows:

1. Pain medications that can stop severe pain, such as Tramadol, Morphine, Dionin. They are strictly prescription.
2. Antiemetic drugs that may be useful during chemotherapy, such as Ondansetron, Granisetron, Metoclopramide.
3. Immunomodulators to improve immunity, as it is significantly suppressed by aggressive treatment. Often used such drugs as Galavit, Roncoleukin, Neovir.
4. Vitamin complexes to maintain immunity.

In some cases, hormonal drugs may be used if the tumor is one of the varieties that respond to it.

Surgical intervention

Unfortunately, the removal of a spinal tumor is not available to doctors in all cases. Since neoplasms are removed with excision of healthy tissue by about 3-5 cm, and the ridge does not allow this , some tumors are considered inoperable. For such cancer patients, another treatment is selected.

If the tumor is nevertheless subject to surgical removal, then the operation is performed under general anesthesia. During this, the surgeon excises the affected tissue. Unfortunately, such operations are considered quite dangerous, since there is a chance to hurt the nerve endings and bone marrow. Such a medical error can lead to paralysis of the body below the location of the formation.

Difficulty appears if the tumor is localized in the bone tissue. In this case, the affected bone can be replaced by a donor bone (the patient’s iliac bone is often used) or metal implants. In this case, the cost of the operation increases significantly, and with it the chances of the patient recovering.

The recovery process after surgery is also lengthy. During this, the patient may be prohibited from sitting, making sudden movements and even bending over. Painful sensations can also be noted, which are stopped by taking analgesics.

Forecast

Unfortunately, the prognosis for metastases in the spine is not always comforting. The success of treatment directly depends on an early diagnosis, as well as determining the type of tumor. Also, a positive result of treatment can be at a young age and in the absence of concomitant chronic diseases.

Five-year survival from 20 to 45 years is from 50 to 90%, depending on the stage of the cancer, at which the disease was discovered and treatment started. At the age from 45 to 55 years, the percentage decreases to indicators from 29 to 70%. If the patient's age exceeds 55 years, then statistical data indicate data from 20 to 50% of survivors for 5 years. Much depends on the location of the tumor, the correctness of the prescribed treatment, as well as the individual characteristics of the body of a particular patient.

It should also be noted that, as such, prevention of spinal cancer does not exist, however, risks can be minimized with regular moderate physical exertion, the absence of hypothermia and injuries.