Rare Bone Metastases of the Olecranon

Abstract

Bone metastases are prevalent in patients with cancer, especially with primary lung, breast, renal cell, thyroid, and prostate carcinomas. When looking specifically at primary renal cell carcinoma, approximately 40% of patients will develop bone metastases during the course of their disease. However, distal bony involvement to the appendicular skeleton occurs less frequently, developing below the elbow and knee in approximately 7% of metastatic renal cell carcinoma patients. The incidence of olecranon metastasis is extremely rare in all cancers and so far only two cases have been reported in literature. We report the third case of an olecranon metastasis in a patient with renal cell carcinoma.

Olecranon metastases from primary lung cancer: case report and review of the literature

“…3 Metastasis to the olecranon is extremely rare in all cancers. 2 Metastasis from renal cell carcinoma and multiple myeloma have been reported in the English literature. 2 A case of a mucin-producing adenocarcinoma of the colon metastasising to the olecranon was reported previously.…”

“…2 Metastasis from renal cell carcinoma and multiple myeloma have been reported in the English literature. 2 A case of a mucin-producing adenocarcinoma of the colon metastasising to the olecranon was reported previously. 1 This current case report is the first to describe an olecranon tumour that had metastasized from a primary lung tumour.…”

“…1 Distal bony involvement to the appendicular skeleton occurs less frequently and the incidence of olecranon metastasis is extremely rare in all cancers; so far no more than 10 cases have been reported in literature. 2 This case report describes an olecranon metastasis in a patient with lung carcinoma.…”

Tumours and tumour mimics in the olecranon

“…Three cases have been reported in the English literature where the primary cancers were renal cell carcinoma and multiple myeloma. 28 The present series includes a case of a mucin-producing adenocarcinoma of the colon metastasizing to the olecranon (Fig 7). Most metastatic lesions are osteolytic but many deposits from carcinoma of the prostate and occasionally others are osteoblastic.…”

“…11 d Incidence of myeloma. e Three reported cases of occurrence in olecranon 28. f Two reported cases of occurrence in olecranon.32,33 g One reported case of occurrence in olecranon 42.…”