Bone cancer is a health condition that involves aggressive cell growth in one’s bones. It is a rare type of cancer. Most cases of stage 1 and a few stage 2 bone cancers are curable, while stage 3 is almost impossible to cure though treatments can relieve symptoms and delay the spread. Therefore, early diagnosis is important in managing the condition. A few common warning signs of bone cancer are discussed below.

Swelling and redness of joints
Like other kinds of cancer, bone cancer also advances through the uncontrollable multiplying of cells. When the cells aggressively create more copies of themselves, they tend to form a lump in the joints. In many cases, such lumps are clearly visible from the outside. The redness is caused by inflammation and irritation triggered by the rapid cell growth. A lump or swelling emerges after the affected area becomes painful.

An example of swelling is when bone cancers form in the neck area. In such cases, a lump is formed in the back of an individual’s throat. It causes trouble in breathing and swallowing food.

Movement difficulties
When bone cancer metastasizes, it restricts a person’s movement in multiple ways. For example, if the tumor is present in a bone or joint, it weakens that area and makes it prone to injuries and fractures. It causes great pain and discomfort to a person with the condition. Additionally, bone cancer, like other malignancies, spreads to nearby cells, muscles, tendons, and tissues. It causes those areas to go stiff and become less easily movable.

When cancer sets in, it can also spread to areas such as the lungs and affect a person’s breathing. This results in people getting exhausted quickly and doing lesser work. Exhaustion is one of the main reasons people with bone cancer do not feel motivated to move around a lot.

Bone pain
Bone cancer can cause a dull and deep pain sensation in the affected area. This pain worsens when such individuals do not rest or do physical activity that aggravates internal bone injuries caused by rapid cell multiplication.

Besides the cancerous cells and injuries, bone pain can be caused by chemotherapy and radiotherapy, which are treatments aimed at aggressively destroying the cancerous cells within one’s bone. In such scenarios, a patient may naturally feel pain immediately after the treatment or in the long term.

Fever
Fever is one of the rarer early symptoms of bone cancer.