The LR Team is involved in the reconstructive treatment of children with bone tumours.

Benign Tumours

A tumour that is ‘benign’ means that it will not spread anywhere else, but it may cause pain or bone problems at its location. Some benign bone tumours distort the shape of the bone, or make it more likely to fracture. Some are intensely painful. Others do not cause any problems at all, and may go away with time.

Some examples of benign bone tumours include Unicameral or Simple Bone Cysts (UBC/SBC), Aneurysmal Bone Cysts (ABC), Osteoid Osteoma (OO), Fibrous Dysplasia, Non-Ossifying Fibromas, Enchondromas, and Osteochondromas. 

There are many types of benign bone tumours, and each has different treatment options depending on whether it is growing larger or not. Some tumours may require an injection to help them resolve, some may require a larger operation to remove them. Sometimes, we may need to take a sample of a tumour, to prove what type of tumour it is.

Malignant Tumours

A ‘malignant tumour’ is a tumor in bone that is more dangerous and has the potential to spread to other parts of the body. These are also called bone cancers, and includes tumours like Ewing Sarcoma and Osteosarcoma. Treatment of these tumours is done in close collaboration with the Paediatric Integrated Cancer Service (PICS). Often these tumours require long courses of special medications (chemotherapy) as well as large surgery to remove the tumour. 

When a malignant bone tumour is surgically removed, structures close to the tumour may also need to be removed, these could be parts of muscles, growth plates, certain tendons or nerve, or even entire joints. Depending on what is removed, will guide the reconstruction options. LR techniques employed may include:

• Endoprosthetic Reconstruction – Replacing a joint or section of bone with metal components.
• Vascularised Fibula Reconstruction – Specialized microsurgical techniques are used to move a bone from somewhere else (the fibula) to rebuild the bone that has been removed.
• Allograft Reconstruction – This involves rebuilding the bone with carefully treated ‘donated bone’.
• Lengthening + Bone Transport – These techniques involve slowly moving bones (using an external fixator or a motorized nail) in order to grow new bone or lengthen a limb.
• Amputation – Is sometimes the most feasible and successful option.