Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsTypesSymptomsDiagnosisTreatment
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Types
Symptoms
Diagnosis
Treatment
Pain in your hip may be scary, but cancer is only one reason you may feel this pain. Common reasons for sharp,burning, or aching pain can be conditions like arthritis and bursitis, injuries, or severe causes like joint infections or fractures.
Knowing thesigns of hip cancercan help you determine when to see your healthcare provider and what to expect.
This article looks at types and symptoms of hip cancer, how it’s diagnosed and treated, and what else could be causing your hip pain.
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Types of Hip Cancer
Bone Cancer
Cancer that starts in the bone is called primary bone cancer. There are several types of primary bone cancer, including:
Bone Cancer: Overview and More
Metastatic Cancer
Metastatic cancersof the hip are cancer that started elsewhere in the body and has spread to the hip and is more common than primary bone cancer.
Cancers in the hip can occur in the:
Certain types of cancer spread to bones more than others. These include:
Leukemia
Leukemiais one of the most common forms of hip cancer. It forms in the bone marrow, where cancerous cells overtake healthy cells. How this occurs and how quickly depends on the type of leukemia.
Symptoms and Signs of Cancer in the Hip
Pain
Pain is the most common symptom of hip cancer. It can come and go and be worse at night, gradually worsening and becoming continuous.
At first, it may subside with movement, but later, activity can make the pain worse, especially as the bone weakens. As the bone weakens, fractures can occur, though this is not common. If a fracture is through a tumor, the pain is often sharp and much worse than previously.
Bone Loss May Lead to FracturesBone cancer can weaken the bone, leading to fracture. Bone fractures across a tumor are very painful. Often, if severe pain occurs in a bone that has been sore for some time, it is due to a fracture.
Bone Loss May Lead to Fractures
Bone cancer can weaken the bone, leading to fracture. Bone fractures across a tumor are very painful. Often, if severe pain occurs in a bone that has been sore for some time, it is due to a fracture.
Other Common Symptoms
Emergency Symptoms
Some symptoms of hip cancer require immediate medical attention. If your pain is severe, seek help right away. Other emergency signs include:
Diagnosing Hip Cancer
To diagnose hip cancer, your healthcare provider will perform an exam and, if necessary, will order further tests.
Office Exam
If hip cancer is suspected, the healthcare provider will perform a physical check for lumps, pain, and swelling, as well as any other symptoms. A history of any illnesses and conditions, health practices, and past medical care or treatments may be taken.
Tests
Standard tests for hip cancer include imaging tests like:
Other Causes of Hip Pain
Depending on your symptoms and early findings, your healthcare provider may check for other possible sources of your hip pain. These may include:
The type of treatment for hip cancer depends on the type of cancer it is and what stage it is in. Generally, this can include medication and surgery.
Treatment Depends on the Type of CancerSome cancer requires surgery, while others respond to targeted therapy. Often, a combination of treatments will be used, especially if the surgery does not remove all cancerous cells.
Treatment Depends on the Type of Cancer
Some cancer requires surgery, while others respond to targeted therapy. Often, a combination of treatments will be used, especially if the surgery does not remove all cancerous cells.
Medication
Medications used to treat hip cancer include targeted therapy drugs, chemotherapy drugs, as well as radiopharmaceuticals.
Chemotherapy is often used for bone hip cancers that are diagnosed as Ewing’s sarcomaor osteosarcoma. Other types of bone cancer are not responsive to chemotherapy drugs. Chemotherapy is a treatment for primary cancer or those that have spread (metastasized) to other areas.
Targeted therapy drugs are medications that target specific types of cancer and how the cells grow and reproduce.
Depending on the type of cancer, these drugs may interfere with the proteins or enzymes and signals the cells send to grow and spread. They are notably helpful for cancers that don’t respond to chemotherapy, such as chordomas and other bone cancers.
Surgery
Hip cancer is often treated with surgery, which is the primary treatment for most bone cancers. With surgery, an incision is made to remove (excise) the tumor and some of the surrounding tissue.
This wide excision makes sure any cancer cells that may have spread to surrounding tissue are removed so they do not spread further into healthy tissue. If not all cancerous cells are removed with surgery, radiation therapy may be used.
Most of the time, the limb can be spared with the same survival rates as amputation surgery. Limb sparing surgery can result in further complications with difficult recovery but is often preferred over amputation. Your healthcare provider can help you decide which procedure is best for you.
Radiation
External beam radiation therapy—used to treat hip cancer in the bone—uses high-energy particles to kill cancer cells. It is not often used to treat bone cancer unless surgery cannot remove all of cancer. If surgery fails to remove all cancerous cells in surrounding tissue, external radiation may target it.
Summary
Hip pain has many causes besides cancer. Cancer of the hip can be a bone cancer, metastatic cancer (spread to the hip from somewhere else), or leukemia (a bone-marrow cancer).
Symptoms of hip cancer include pain, swelling, fever, swollen lymph nodes, night sweats, and generally feeling sick.
To diagnose hip cancer, your provider will give you an examination and get scans to see inside the joint. Treatment depends on the type of cancer. It may include medication, surgery, and/or radiation.
A Word From VerywellHip pain can result from a variety of causes, including musculoskeletal pain or inflammation from an infection. Hip pain may be related to cancer, so it’s important to consult with your healthcare provider about testing or blood work. If you are diagnosed with cancer after having hip pain, speak with an oncologist about treatment options.—ARCHANA SHARMA, DO, MEDICAL EXPERT BOARD
A Word From Verywell
Hip pain can result from a variety of causes, including musculoskeletal pain or inflammation from an infection. Hip pain may be related to cancer, so it’s important to consult with your healthcare provider about testing or blood work. If you are diagnosed with cancer after having hip pain, speak with an oncologist about treatment options.—ARCHANA SHARMA, DO, MEDICAL EXPERT BOARD
Hip pain can result from a variety of causes, including musculoskeletal pain or inflammation from an infection. Hip pain may be related to cancer, so it’s important to consult with your healthcare provider about testing or blood work. If you are diagnosed with cancer after having hip pain, speak with an oncologist about treatment options.
—ARCHANA SHARMA, DO, MEDICAL EXPERT BOARD
5 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Plante M, Wallace R, Busconi BD.Clinical diagnosis of hip pain. Clin Sports Med. 2011;30(2):225-38. doi:10.1016/j.csm.2010.12.003American Cancer Society.Signs and symptoms of bone cancer.American Cancer Society.Tests for bone cancer.University of Pennsylvania Medical School: PennMedicine.Hip pain.American Cancer Society.Targeted therapy for bone cancer.
5 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Plante M, Wallace R, Busconi BD.Clinical diagnosis of hip pain. Clin Sports Med. 2011;30(2):225-38. doi:10.1016/j.csm.2010.12.003American Cancer Society.Signs and symptoms of bone cancer.American Cancer Society.Tests for bone cancer.University of Pennsylvania Medical School: PennMedicine.Hip pain.American Cancer Society.Targeted therapy for bone cancer.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Plante M, Wallace R, Busconi BD.Clinical diagnosis of hip pain. Clin Sports Med. 2011;30(2):225-38. doi:10.1016/j.csm.2010.12.003American Cancer Society.Signs and symptoms of bone cancer.American Cancer Society.Tests for bone cancer.University of Pennsylvania Medical School: PennMedicine.Hip pain.American Cancer Society.Targeted therapy for bone cancer.
Plante M, Wallace R, Busconi BD.Clinical diagnosis of hip pain. Clin Sports Med. 2011;30(2):225-38. doi:10.1016/j.csm.2010.12.003
American Cancer Society.Signs and symptoms of bone cancer.
American Cancer Society.Tests for bone cancer.
University of Pennsylvania Medical School: PennMedicine.Hip pain.
American Cancer Society.Targeted therapy for bone cancer.
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