Ewing sarcoma is a type of cancer that starts in the bones. It most often occurs in teenagers and young adults. This cancer grows quickly and can spread (metastasize) to other parts of the body, including the lungs.
Ewing’s sarcoma can be found in the bone of the leg, arm, shoulder or pelvis. It also can form in the soft tissue around a bone. Ewing sarcoma is different from other types of tumors that start in the bone or soft tissue, such as neuroblastoma, rhabdomyosarcoma, lymphoma and desmoplastic small-round cell tumor. Doctors diagnose Ewing sarcoma by taking a sample of the tumor for testing. They look at the tissue under a microscope to see if it has cancer cells. A biopsy can be done with a needle or during surgery. A doctor may also do a bone marrow aspiration and biopsy to find out if the cancer has spread to the bone marrow.
The cause of Ewing’s sarcoma is not known. It is thought to start when a cell develops changes (mutations) in its DNA. Mutations change the way a cell works and cause it to grow and multiply faster than normal cells. These abnormal cells can then grow into a mass (tumor) and destroy the surrounding tissues. The abnormal cells can also break away from the original tumor and spread to other parts of the body, such as the lungs or other bones.
Treatment options for ewing sarcoma include surgery, radiation and chemotherapy. Chemotherapy uses drugs to kill cancer cells in the area where the tumor is located and in other parts of the body. Usually, a combination of chemotherapy drugs is used to treat Ewing’s sarcoma. Surgery and radiation can be used in combination or alone. A doctor may recommend removing the entire tumor, depending on the location of the tumor and the patient’s age and health condition. If the tumor is in a limb, doctors may use a technique called limb-sparing surgery.
Radiation can help destroy any remaining cancer cells in the area of the tumor. Doctors may give your child external radiation or use internal radiotherapy, which involves placing seeds, wires or catheters inside the body near the tumor. Doctors also might recommend surgery to remove any part of the limb that is diseased or damaged from the tumor or from radiation.
About 70 percent of children diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma are cured. However, the chance of being cured drops to less than 30 percent if the cancer has spread when it is first treated.
New treatments are being tested to improve the chances of a cure for Ewing’s sarcoma. One example is using a drug that blocks the activity of a protein needed for cancer cells to grow. Another is using a drug that helps the body’s immune system fight cancer cells. You or your child may be able to take part in a clinical trial that is testing a new treatment for Ewing’s sarcoma.
