Systemic treatment options for bone and soft tissue sarcomas remained unchanged until the 2000s. These cancers presented challenges in new drug development partly because of their rarity and heterogeneity. Many new molecular targeting drugs have been tried in the 2010s, and some were approved for bone and soft tissue sarcoma.
The skeleton is a potential metastatic target of many malignant tumors. Up to 85% of prostate and breast cancer patients may develop bone metastases causing severe pain syndromes in many of them. Radionuclide therapy is recommended for pain palliation. The therapy is repeatable, depending on cell counts. Clinical trials using Radium-223 and/or combinations of chemotherapy and radionuclides are aiming at a more curative approach.
Sources: PubMed
Approved treatments
- 32P-Sodium Phosphate (bone pain palliation – polycythemia vera)
- 89Sr-Strontium Chloride (bone pain palliation)
- 153Sm-Lexidronam (EDTMP) (bone pain palliation)
- 153Sm-Oxabiphor (ETMP) (bone pain palliation)
- 177Lu-EDTMP (bone pain palliation)
- 186Re-Rhenium Etidronate (HEDP) (bone pain palliation)
- 188Re-Etidronate (HEDP) (pain palliation – RSO)
- 223Ra-Radium Dichloride (bone metastases, prostate cancer spread to the bones)
About bone cancer
- What is Bone Cancer – American Cancer Society
- Bone Cancer (Sarcoma of Bone) – Cancer.Net
Clinical trials
Patient associations
Europe: Bone Cancer Research Trust (GBR), SPAGN-Sarcoma Patient Advocacy Global Network (DEU)
North America: Sarcoma Alliance Mission (USA), Sarcoma Cancer Foundation of Canada (CAN)
Asia and Asia Pacific: IOF-Asia Pacific (AUS)
South America: IOF-Latin America (ARG)
Middle East: Middle East & Africa (ARE)
Worldwide: IOF-International Osteoporosis Foundation