title: The role of plain radiographs in management of bone metastases.
abstract: Approximately 50% of patients with cancer will develop skeletal metastases, which often lead to significant pain. When a patient complains of pain, a bone scan and/or plain x-rays are ordered as investigations. X-rays necessitate a 1-cm diameter mass and 50% bone mineral loss at minimum for detection. Up to 40% of lesions will be unidentified by x-rays, presenting false-negative results. Computed tomography (CT) scans can recognize a bony metastatic lesion up to 6 months earlier than an x-ray. However, plain x-rays can also lead to rare false-positive results. We present a case with a false-positive result in a patient with lung cancer.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiation Oncology, Sunnybrook Odette Cancer Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Nadia
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Salvo
authors.forename: Monique
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Christakis
authors.forename: Joel
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rubenstein
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: de Sa
authors.forename: Julie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Napolskikh
authors.forename: Emily
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Sinclair
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ford
authors.forename: Philiz
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Goh
authors.forename: Edward
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Chow
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001859:Bone Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000556:secondary*; D005189:False Positive Reactions; D006801:Humans; D008067:Lipoma / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D010146:Pain / Q000209:etiology; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed