Diagnosing Bone and Musculoskeletal Cancer

We use a variety of tests to confirm cancer and determine treatment options

We’ll need to diagnose the type of tumor you have to provide the best treatment. Benign (non-cancerous) tumors may not require treatment, but malignant (cancerous) tumors must be treated as soon as possible to prevent them from spreading.

How we test for bone and musculoskeletal cancer

We use a variety of tools to determine treatment for bone and musculoskeletal conditions. These tests include:

• Biopsy -- using a tissue sample from your tumor, we can run tests to determine whether it is cancerous
• Bone scan -- this test shows whether the affected bone has been damaged and whether the cancer has spread to other bones in the body
• PET/CT scan -- we use imaging tests to create a picture of the tumor to show us if the cancer has spread
• Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) -- we use a magnetic field and pulses of energy to create a high-contrast image of your tumor to aid diagnosis

Once we’ve diagnosed your bone or musculoskeletal cancer, we’ll create a personalized treatment plan to make sure you understand what will be involved in your treatment.