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Toddler Gets Telescopic, Prosthetic Arm Bone

by Amar Toor on November 9, 2009 at 10:24 AM

In a strange meeting of James Cameron and feel-good medical magic, a young boy who was diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer a year ago is now cancer free, thanks to an experimental prosthetic replacement.

Mark Blinder was three years old when doctors determined he had Ewing's sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer, in his arm's humerus bone. The Los Angeles Times reports that doctors initially tried chemotherapy, which alleviated the pain without reducing the size of the tumor. The only other option, it seemed, was amputation. Stanford University doctor Lawrence Rinsky, though, convinced the Blinders to try a less conventional option: a telescoping, artificial bone replacement from Biomet, Inc. Unlike most artificial bones, which tend to be only "partial" replacements, this particular procedure required the total removal of the cancer-ridden bone.

The procedure, though intensely complicated (One doctor compared it to carving out a peach pit without touching it.), seems to have been successful. Blinder underwent further chemotherapy afterward, as a precautionary measure, but is now gradually learning to use his new arm. He can move his wrist and fingers, and even pick up small objects. The child will never regain full functioning ability in his elbow or shoulder, and he'll have to go in for a few more operations as doctors adjust the bone to grow with the rest of his body. But if the procedure proves successful in the long term, it'll not only save the toddler's limb, but could also mark a significant precedent for future bone-replacement procedures. And, hopefully, it'll give more children a chance at a normal life. [From: The Los Angeles Times, via Discover Magazine]

Tags: bones, cancer, doctor, health, medical, medicine, prosthetic, surgery, top

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