Ewing’s Sarcoma Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis and Treatment

What Is Ewing’s sarcoma?

It accounts for only 1% of all childhood cancers. Although it can occur at any age, it very rarely occurs in adults over the age of 30.
Ewing’s sarcoma most often targets leg bones and hipbones, chest and spine bone. It rarely affects soft tissues of the arms, legs, head or neck. A common genetic locus is responsible for a larger percentage of Ewing’s sarcoma.
The disease is considerably different from primitive neuroectodermal tumors, since the latter is not associated with bones. However, generally the two are grouped together and referred to as the “Ewing family of tumors”.
The male/ female ratio of the affected individual is 1.6:1, thereby signifying that males are more prone to developing Ewing’s sarcoma.
Since most of the symptoms of Ewing’s sarcoma are analogous to other conditions, it is hard to diagnose it correctly in earlier stages. If diagnosed early, Ewing’s sarcoma has a high survival rate.

Causes of Ewing’s sarcoma:

Like most types of bone cancers, Ewing’s sarcoma too has an unknown cause. However, research is still ongoing in this domain.
One theory suggests that it is caused by fast-growing bones. According to this proposed theory, the rapid growth spurt associated with puberty make bones more susceptible to Ewing’s sarcoma.
Moreover, there is evidence to suggest that umbilical hernia may play a role in developing Ewing’s sarcoma. This is due to the observation made by researchers that babies born with umbilical hernia are at a three times higher risk of developing it.
Furthermore, Genetic exchange between chromosomes can cause cells to become cancerous. Most cases are the result of a translocation between chromosomes 11 and 22, which fuses the EWS gene of chromosome 22 to theFLI1 gene on chromosome 11.

Symptoms of Ewing’s sarcoma:

Symptoms exhibited by affected individual depend on the size and location of Ewing’s sarcoma.

Following symptoms may be exhibited:

Pain in the affected area that gets progressively worse
Swelling in the affected area
Tenderness in the affected area
High fever
Severe tiredness
Weight loss
Increased risk of fracture

Diagnosis of Ewing’s sarcoma:

The definitive diagnosis is based on histomorphologic findings, Immunohistochemistry and molecular pathology.
Ewing’s sarcoma is a small-blue-round-cell tumor that typically has a clear cytoplasm on H&E staining, due to glycogen. Its distinctive H&E staining may be used to diagnose Ewing’s sarcoma.