Staging of bone neoplasms: an orthopedic oncologist's perspective

The process of staging bone tumors is complex. The goal of staging is to define the type of tumor and its extent. Like staging for other neoplasms, it stratifies patients into groups based on prognosis and established treatment protocols. Staging is a multidisciplinary effort involving orthopedic oncologists, musculoskeletal radiologists, and orthopedic pathologists. The diagnosis is often suggested on clinical examination and review of the radiographs. The biopsy usually confirms the clinical and radiographic impression. However, biopsy is difficult and leads to errors in diagnosis in nearly 20% of cases. These errors may make limb salvage impossible and adversely affect survival. For this reason, staging and especially the biopsy should be done in the institution where definitive treatment is planned.