When you have an orthopaedic (bone, joint or muscle) tumor, you need compassionate support from both orthopaedic experts and cancer specialists (oncologists). At University of Missouri Health Care, you have access to experienced multidisciplinary care teams who work together to help you fight cancer and maintain your bone and muscle function.

At MU Health Care, physicians from the Ellis Fischel Cancer Center and Missouri Orthopaedic Institute work together to diagnose and treat musculoskeletal tumors. Our team approach helps you receive personalized care and get access to the latest surgical and nonsurgical treatment options. Each physician on your care team has years of specialized experience, helping you determine which treatments can help you have the best possible outcomes.

Your care team may include many doctors, such as:

• Interventional radiologists
• Oncologists
• Orthopaedic surgeons
• Plastic surgeons 
• Radiation oncologists
• Surgical oncologists
• Vascular surgeons 

Your entire care team meets during a special musculoskeletal tumor conference to discuss your care and review your X-rays, lab results and other information. By going over all your records together, the team can create an individualized treatment plan with all aspects of your health in mind.

Orthopaedic tumors we treat

Our team treats tumors that affect your bones, muscles, ligaments and other soft tissues. These tumors can be benign (noncancerous) or malignant (cancerous). The tumors may have started growing in your bones or spread (metastasized) from other areas of your body. We provide comprehensive treatment for:

Benign bone tumors, including:

• Bone cyst
• Chondroblastoma
• Enchondroma
• Fibrous dysplasia
• Giant cell tumor of bone
• Osteoblastoma
• Osteochondroma

Benign soft tissue tumors, including:

• Benign fibrous histiocytoma
• Fibroma
• Ganglion
• Hemangioma
• Lipoma
• Myxoma
• Pigmented villonodular synovitis (PVNS)
• Schwannoma

Malignant bone tumors, including:

• Sarcoma
• Osteosarcoma
• Ewing’s sarcoma
• Chondrosarcoma
• Adamantinoma
• Chordoma
• Lymphoma of bone
• Metastatic cancers (that start elsewhere in the body and spread to bone or soft tissue)
• Myeloma

Malignant soft tissue tumors, including:

• Angiosarcoma
• Epithelioid sarcoma
• Fibrosarcoma
• Liposarcoma
• Malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors
• Myxofibrosarcoma
• Rhabdomyosarcoma
• Synovial sarcoma

Advanced treatment options

At an academic health center like MU Health Care, you have access to treatments based on the latest research and medical evidence. Our physicians participate in advanced research and clinical trials, offering you a wide range of surgical and nonsurgical treatment options.

Your personalized treatment plan considers what type of tumor you have, the size of your tumor and where it is located. 

Your treatment may include: 

• Chemotherapy
• Clinical trials
• Limb-sparing complex reconstructive techniques 
• Minimally invasive interventional procedures 
• Radiation therapy

It’s important to talk with your doctors about what treatment options best fit your needs and lifestyle.