Osteochondroma (exostosis)

Bones naturally grow and change as your child gets older. However, throughout this process, problems can sometimes occur. An osteochondroma is one such abnormality; it’s a benign (not cancerous) tumor made up of both bone and cartilage and it usually occurs near the end of a long bone, such as the thigh bone.

• It’s not a cancerous condition.
• An osteochondroma is one of the most common benign bone tumors.
• It looks like a growth on the surface of the bone.
• An osteochondromas do not spread beyond the affected bone, but they may grow in size as your child grows.
• It usually stops growing at the same time your child’s bones stop growing (around age 16 in girls and 18 in boys).
• An osteochondromas can occur as a single tumor or, less commonly, as multiple tumors.
• Most of the time, the tumor grows in the bones of the either the thigh, shin, upper arm or hip.
• Generally, it doesn’t need any treatment. However, in some cases, an osteochondroma can cause pain or press on important nerves or blood.
• Surgery is only necessary if the tumor is causing significant pain or putting pressure on blood vessels or nerves.

How Children’s Hospital Boston approaches osteochondroma

Experts in our Bone & Soft Tissue Tumor Program are devoted to caring for children and teenagers with osteochondromas and other bone and soft tissue disorders.

Our multidisciplinary approach to care ensures that your child’s case receives careful consideration from experts in several fields before your care team develops a personalized treatment plan. We integrate expertise from a wide range of specialists, including:

• pediatric experts from every medical subspecialty, such as orthopedics, pathology, physical therapy and radiology
• highly skilled and experienced pediatric nurses
• Child Life specialists, psychologists, social workers and resource specialists who provide supportive care before, during and after treatment

Reviewed by Megan Anderson, MD,?
© Children’s Hospital Boston, 2010