Pathologic Hip Fractures A Class of Their Own

Description: The hip is a common site for metastatic disease. In 2005, approximately 650,000 patients in the United States will be newly diagnosed with cancers that commonly metastasize to bone; these cancers include breast, lung, renal, thyroid, and prostate.1 Bone metastases eventually will develop in many of these patients. Moreover, patients may present to the orthopedic surgeon with musculoskeletal symptoms secondary to bone metastases and no prior diagnosis of cancer.
This article highlights the detection and evaluation of metastatic disease, discusses when referral to an orthopedic oncologist is appropriate, and provides guidelines for the surgical treatment of metastatic disease about the hip.
Mary I. O’Connor, MD ORTHOPEDICS 2006; 29:789