Surgical management of primary bone sarcomas

This article addresses the surgical management of bone sarcoma and includes all the main tumour types, for example chrondrosarcoma, osteosarcoma and Ewing's sarcoma of bone. The article is aimed at the experienced orthopaedic surgeon who may not have specific knowledge of dealing with musculoskeletal tumours. Important principles, such as biopsy, are discussed and appropriate resection methods described. The use of endoprosthetic replacement is a crucial tool in the orthopaedic oncologist's armoury and principles of use are described. Adjuvant therapy such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy is also discussed and some common protocols are also described.