Diagnosing Ewing's Sarcoma
If a person has possible symptoms of Ewing's sarcoma, the doctor will typically:
- Perform a physical exam
- Ask about the patient's personal and family medical history
- Recommend additional tests and procedures that examine the bone.
- Blood tests
- X-rays
- Computed tomography (CT) scan
- Bone scan
- Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan
- Angiogram
- Biopsy.
Once a doctor has diagnosed Ewing's sarcoma, he or she may order more tests to find out if cancer cells have spread to other parts of the body. This is called staging. Currently, there is no staging system for the different types of Ewing's sarcoma. Instead, most patients are grouped depending on:
- Whether the cancer is found in only one part of the body (localized Ewing's sarcoma)
- Whether the cancer has spread from one part of the body to another (metastatic Ewing's sarcoma)
- Whether the cancer has returned (recurrent Ewing's sarcoma).
The doctor will need to determine where the cancer is located and how far the disease has spread in order to plan the best treatment.
Treatment for Ewing's Sarcoma
- Whether the tumor is localized, metastatic, or recurrent (see Ewing's Sarcoma Stages)
- The location and the size of the tumor
- The patient's age and general health.
In general, treatment for Ewing's sarcoma may include:
- Surgery
- Radiation therapy
- Chemotherapy.
Choosing the most appropriate Ewing's sarcoma treatment is a decision that ideally involves the patient, the family, and the healthcare team.
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