Tramadol for Osteosarcoma: Is it effective for Cancer Pain? 

When a medical condition occurs, it brings its own set of symptoms and problems. Cancer is a fatal medical condition and brings many changes. One of the ordinary and persistent things is pain. Therefore, this article can help you with pain relief solutions like using Tramadol for osteosarcoma. 

Our bodies have different organs and different cancers or tumors can occur. There are commonly five types: carcinoma, melanoma, leukemia, sarcoma, and lymphoma. So, let us now focus on the sarcoma type that we are going to talk about. 

What is Osteosarcoma?

Let us understand it separately to get a better hang of the word. Firstly, Sarcoma is a  type of cancer that starts in bones, joints, or soft tissues like cartilage, blood vessels, fat, and muscles. Further, Osteo means “bones”. Therefore, collectively osteosarcoma means cancer of the bones. The other name for this kind of bone cancer is Osteogenic sarcoma.

Though it is not a common type of cancer, there are cases in the United States. Almost 1000 cases of osteosarcoma get diagnosed every year. Also, studies show that most cases occur in children, teens, and young adults, while only 1 in 10 cases is of older people. 

How does Cancer start?

There are uncountable cells in the body that make our body and are necessary for living. Also, the old cells die and new healthy cells are formed continuously in the body. So, when the unwanted cells do not die and also new cells form in the body. The uncontrollable growth of new cells forms masses resulting in the tumor. Similarly, the unusual growth of cells in bones is osteosarcoma. 

Where does Osteosarcoma grow?

This type of cancer usually grows or starts in the fast-growing bones or long bones. Especially in children and teens, it occurs in arm or leg bones. Also, the upper arm close to the shoulder is also common place. In most cases, it develops near the knee or in the lower part of the thigh bone or upper part of the shinbone. 

However, cancer can also occur in various other bones which is more common in older people. Other places can be the pelvis, shoulder, jaw, or even skull. 

Subtypes of Osteosarcoma

According to the studies by the doctor. They divide it into three subcategories which are:

High Grade: This subtype of cancer is the fastest growing and cells continuously divide to form new cells. Also, the bones in this type of cancer do not look normal under the microscope. In most cases of children and teens, the cancer is high-grade. The most common high-grade cancer is:

• Chondroblastic
• Fibroblastic 
• Osteoblastic 
• Telangiectatic

Intermediate Grade: This is between high-grade and low-grade osteosarcoma. However, it is rare among all. However, the main type is periosteal and juxtacortical. 

Low Grade: This type of cancer grows the slowest and usually the bone looks normal. However, under the microscope, few dividing cells are seen. The common types of low-grade cancer are Parosteal and Intramedullary or intraosseous well-differentiated (low-grade central). 

Signs and Symptoms 

Cancer at the starting stage, especially the low grade, can be hard to feel or know. So, here are some symptoms that you should not ignore osteosarcoma:

• Pain after exercise 
• Limping (if it affects the leg)
• Bone pain or tenderness 
• Unexplained fever 
• Lifting pain (if affects arms) 
• Limited movements (if joints are affected) 
• Swelling and redness at a sight
• Broken bones without clear reasons 
• Lumps around bones or at the end of bones 

Causes and Risk Factors 

Though there are unknown causes, people especially children and teens are more at risk of developing such cancer. Also, studies indicate that most cases are from people before 25 years of age. Here are some risk factors that can cause sarcoma in people:

• • Age: This type of cancer is more common in children and teenagers especially those who are experiencing a growth spurt. Also, children who are taller are at more risk of developing the condition. 
  • Genes: Certain changes in your RB1 genes or having gene-associated diseases like Paget’s disease, Bloom syndrome, Werner syndrome, Diamond-Blackfan anemia, Li-Fraumeni syndrome, etc. 
  • Treatments: Certain cancer treatments like radiation therapy or even medications containing alkylating agents can increase the risk of this cancer. 

• Gender: Before puberty or teenage, boys and girls are both equally at risk for this type of cancer. But in adults, males are more at risk, the reason being longer bone growth. 
• Bone Infarction: It occurs when there is a poor blood supply to the bone resulting in cellular death of the bone. Now, the cells are destroyed increasing the risk of bone cancer. 

Sometimes there are other unknown causes that can develop the condition. However, the above are some common reasons that are the cause of osteosarcoma among people. 

Is Osteosarcoma deadly?

When we hear the name cancer the silent word that goes into the mind is “death”. However, there are survival rates for people that can give an average time a person can live. Now, the survival rate depends on the type, condition, and stage of cancer. 

Sarcoma can be deadly but it has a good survival rate especially if the diagnosis is made at an earlier stage and when cancer does not spread to other parts. Before knowing the survival rate, you should know that there are three stages i.e. localized, regional, and distant. The stages increase respectively and get more severe. Now, the osteosarcoma survival rate is 5 years. 

Therefore, people with localized stage have a 70% of 5 years survival rate, regional with 65%, and distant with 26%. These numbers are applicable from the stage when cancer gets diagnosis. 

Also, survival rates are not accurate and may vary for a person. Because the survival rate is the estimated number concluded by the previous cases and people’s survival at a particular stage and type of cancer. 

Is Osteosarcoma treatable?

There are treatment options that your doctor will conclude after the results of the diagnosis. Now, for the diagnosis part, your doctor will first go through your previous medical history. Also, you may have to also undergo various tests for the accurate diagnosis of the stage, location, and severity. Some of the tests for the osteosarcoma diagnosis are:

• Blood tests
• X-ray 
• Biopsy 
• ET scan 
• CT (Computed Tomography) 
• Bone scan 
• MRI (Magnetic resonance Imaging) 

Now, on the basis of your diagnosis, your doctor will decide what treatment will work best for you. However, there are different treatment options that can help according to your health condition which are:

• Surgery: The process of surgery is done to completely remove the tumor and no cancerous cells can be left in the body as they can again grow into the tumor. Now, surgeries can be different including Limb sparing surgery, amputation, and rotationplasty. 
• Chemotherapy: The use of chemotherapy involves the use of a strong drug that kills cancer cells. Also, chemotherapy takes place before the surgery to kill cells known as neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Sometimes doctors also perform chemotherapy after the surgery so that there are no remaining cancer cells, namely adjuvant chemotherapy. 
• Radiation Therapy: Radiation therapies are high X-rays that can kill cancer cells. There are two types: internal and external radiation therapy. External therapy involves the machine pointing radiation toward the cancer cells. In contrast, internal radiation requires the placement of a sentence via a needle inside the body at the place of cancer. 

These are some most effective treatment methods, while there are also other medical procedures that may help you with osteosarcoma. In addition, sometimes there are effective clinical trials that may work for you. Therefore, talk with your doctor and analyze all the risks before going for any treatment. 

Osteosarcoma and Pain Management 

During all the symptoms, diagnosis, and especially treatment, pain is something that is inevitable. In fact, many people report pain worsening at night. Therefore, sometimes the pain gets overwhelming and needs instant treatment. In addition, medical procedures like chemotherapies may worsen the pain. 

 Therefore, in that scenario, the doctor can prescribe certain pain relieving tablets for you. Some of the best pain reliever tablets available are Vicodin, Tramadol, Oxycontin, and Roxicodone. However, Tramadol is one of the most highly prescribed medications among others and can provide instant pain relief. 

Tramadol for osteosarcoma pain 

Tramadol is a drug commonly available under the brand name Ultram. It is the 35th most commonly prescribed medication in the United States with more than 17 million prescriptions. In addition, the medication can treat moderate to severe pain in adults. 

Tramadol for osteosarcoma pain works by affecting the nervous system that tells the body about the pain. So, the drug attaches to the opioid receptors responsible for the brain impulses giving messages about pain. So, tramadol is an opioid painkiller and when it attaches to the opioid receptors blocks the pain signals. Therefore, a person can feel instant pain relief. 

Is tramadol for osteosarcoma safe?

Doctors and the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) approve the use of Tramadol for osteosarcoma or other cancer pain. It can treat severe pain effectively and starts working within 30 minutes. Also, it is effective in treating different pain conditions and can be your savior. 

However, every drug comes with limitations. Therefore, it is a Schedule IV controlled substance in the United States. So, it possesses the potential for abuse, addiction, and dependence. Therefore, in some people, using Tramadol for osteosarcoma may not be a good idea. Therefore, Tramadol is a prescription medication and works with your doctor to find the best possible solution for pain relief. 

Summary 

People often think that cancer is a life taking disease. Though it is true to some extent, there are many advances that have occurred in medical science. Therefore, lots of treatments are available and especially at the early stages, people are more at the verge of saving rather than death. 

But one more fact is that cancer is a painful health condition. Therefore, to treat pain, you can use Tramadol for osteosarcoma. Also, sometimes it’s not possible to go out to shop for medications. So, you can buy Tramadol for osteosarcoma online. Also, it is available in different doses like Tramadol 100mg, 200mg and others. 

However, to get Tramadol online, you must contact a licensed pharmacy which declares to provide genuine medication. One such online pharmacy is Rite Aid Pharmacy. Moreover, this online store can provide you discounts and offers. 

Lastly, make your willpower strong and work with your doctor. You will definitely have better health with the right treatment and hope.