Treatment of metastatic tumors of the spine

At present, the chance of death caused by tumor in China is 22.3%, and 80% of malignant tumors have bone metastasis, among which spinal metastases are the most common, accounting for the majority of spinal tumors. Spinal metastases are common in thoracic vertebrae, followed by lumbar vertebrae, cervical vertebrae and sacral vertebrae. According to the statistics, the metastatic rate of spine is only second to the metastatic rate of lung and liver, ranking the third. About 40% of patients who died of malignant tumors had spinal metastasis. The malignant tumors that are prone to spinal metastasis include breast cancer, lung cancer, prostate cancer, cervical cancer, renal cancer, thyroid cancer, liver cancer, gastric cancer, rectal cancer, etc. Among them, breast cancer, lung cancer and prostate cancer are the most common. Among them, breast cancer, lung cancer and prostate cancer are the most common. The main way of metastasis is through the bloodstream, with a few cases of lymphatic metastasis. The treatment of metastatic cancer of spine should firstly aim at the primary tumor for thorough treatment, and the possibility of potential metastatic foci in other organs cannot be ruled out when metastasis of spine has occurred. Metastatic spinal tumors are the most common tumors among spinal tumors, and they are also an important aspect of surgical treatment of spinal tumors. However, once a patient develops spinal metastases, his or her survival is limited. What kind of patients should undergo surgical treatment at what time is still the focus of clinical research. Currently, many scholars believe that the goals of surgical treatment of metastatic spinal tumors are: (1) to restore or preserve adequate neurological function; (2) to relieve pain; and (3) to ensure immediate or permanent spinal stability. Surgery can be chosen for metastatic spinal tumors with life expectancy more than 6 months under the following conditions: ① vertebral collapse causing progressive damage to nerve function, early decompression and good recovery of nerve function; ② severe pain after conservative treatment is ineffective, the erosion and compression of the tumor on the surrounding tissues, resulting in local pain, the tumor invades the spinal nerves, the spinal cord or the cauda equina nerve, resulting in radiating pain, girdling sensation; spinal instability can also produce pain; ③ spinal instability, the spine is not stable, and the pain can also be produced; ③ the spine is not stable, and the spine is not stable, and the pain is not stable. Spinal instability can also cause pain; ③ Spinal instability, the spine and/or its attachments are destroyed by the tumor, or complicated by pathological fracture, and the spine loses part or all of its supportive function; ④ Metastatic foci are confined to a single vertebrae or several adjacent vertebrae; ⑤ Pathological diagnosis is required. If the patient is old, the functional status of vital organs and the ability to withstand surgery should be considered. The deep location of the vertebral body and the proximity of important neurovascular vessels determine that tumor resection is relatively palliative and it is difficult to achieve tumor-free survival. Due to the complex anatomical structure of the spine, insufficient resection scope and contact with the tumor during surgery or passing through the tumor tissues during surgery are frequently encountered problems in spinal tumor resection, and the postoperative recurrence rate is high. Even if extensive resection is achieved, recurrence is still unavoidable. Therefore, regular review can detect tumor recurrence at an early stage, diagnose it at an early stage, and remove the tumor at an early stage when the recurrent tumor is small, which can help to control the tumor in the long term, prolong the survival time of the patients, and improve the quality of life of the patients. Percutaneous vertebroplasty (PVP) is mainly used for pain and vertebral compression fracture caused by vertebral metastatic tumors, myeloma, lymphoma, hemangioma and so on. Artificial bone cement is injected into the vertebral body through the pedicle or directly into the vertebral body to enhance the strength and stability of the vertebral body and relieve low back pain. It is believed that pain relief can be achieved because the mechanical support of bone cement reduces the compressive stress on the vertebral body, and the chemical and thermal effects of bone cement may necrose the tumor tissue or destroy the nerve endings in the vertebral body and the surrounding tissues. In recent years, we have used minimally invasive percutaneous vertebroplasty to treat a large number of patients with metastatic tumors of the vertebral body, especially those with multisegmental vertebral metastatic tumors that cannot be surgically resected because there is no neurological impairment yet. After 2-3 years of follow-up research studies, it has obvious therapeutic effects on enhancing the strength and stability of the vertebral body and rapidly relieving low back pain, greatly improving the survival rate and quality of life of patients. At the same time, because the operation is minimally invasive, with short operation time, minimal bleeding and high safety, even elderly patients can be operated. We welcome patients to come to our hospital for treatment.