The place where the cancer originates is referred to as primary cancer or primary tumour. When a body functions normally, cells replicate and form new cells as and when the body needs them – especially when old and dead cells need to be replaced. In some instances, this mechanism goes wrong. New cells are produced even if the body does not need them, and old cells do not die a natural death and sometimes become immortal. The extra cells form a mass of tissue, or a tumour. Tumours can be benign or malignant. Benign tumours do not spread to other parts of the body; malignant tumours can spread or metastasize and become life threatening.

Metastasis refers to the spread of cancer. Cancer cells sometimes break away from the primary tumour, enter the bloodstream, and spread to other parts of the body. When cancer cells spread and form a tumour in a different organ, the resulting tumour is called metastatic cancer. The cells in the metastatic cancer resemble the original cells, and not the cells of the organ they have spread to.

Metastatic bone cancer occurs when cancerous cells from other infected organs spread to the bone. The most common cancers that spread to the bone are cancer of the breast, cancer of the lungs, cancer of the kidneys, cancer of the prostate, and cancer of the thyroid. These forms of cancer usually affect older people. Symptoms of metastatic bone cancer include bone fracture even from slight injury, bone pain, and occasional swelling at the site of the cancer.

Malignant metastatic bone tumours require radiation and chemotherapy treatment. Since metastatic bone cancers originate from cancers that have already affected other organs of the body, the treatment protocol depends on the primary cancer. In addition, the patient’s general physical health has also to be taken into account.

Life expectancy of a person affected by secondary bone cancer depends on all of the above factors. In addition, the patient’s age, location of the cancer, and the stage of the cancer all have an impact on how long the patient will survive. But in most cases metastatic bone cancer is discovered when the cancer has already reached an advanced stage and life expectancy of the affected person is no more than a few weeks.

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