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Diagnosis and treatment of bone
metastasis: comprehensive guideline
of the Japanese Society of Medical
Oncology, Japanese Orthopedic
Association, Japanese Urological
Association, and Japanese Society
for Radiation Oncology
H Shibata,
1
S Kato,
2
I Sekine,
3
K Abe,
4
N Araki,
5
H Iguchi,
6
T Izumi,
7
Y Inaba,
8
I Osaka,
9
S Kato,
10
A Kawai,
11
S Kinuya,
12
M Kodaira,
13
E Kobayashi,
11
T Kobayashi,
14
J Sato,
15
N Shinohara,
16
S Takahashi,
17
Y Takamatsu,
18
K Takayama,
19
K Takayama,
20
U Tateishi,
21
H Nagakura,
22
M Hosaka,
23
H Morioka,
24
T Moriya,
25
T Yuasa,
26
T Yurikusa,
27
K Yomiya,
28
M Yoshida
29
To cite: Shibata H, Kato S,
Sekine I, et al. Diagnosis and
treatment of bone metastasis:
comprehensive guideline
of the Japanese Society of
Medical Oncology, Japanese
Orthopedic Association,
Japanese Urological
Association, and Japanese
Society for Radiation
Oncology. ESMO Open
2016;1:e000037.
doi:10.1136/esmoopen-2016-
000037
▸Prepublication history and
additional material for this
paper is available online. To
view these files please visit
the journal online
(http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/
esmoopen-2016-000037).
Received 18 January 2016
Accepted 2 February 2016
Find the ESMO Clinical
Practive Guidelines on
bone health in cancer
pateints here: http://
www.esmo.org/
Guidelines/Supportive-
Care/Bone-Health-in-
Cancer-Patients
For numbered affiliations see
end of article.
Correspondence to
Professor Hiroyuki Shibata;
hiroyuki@med.akita-u.ac.jp
ABSTRACT
Diagnosis and treatment of bone metastasis requires
various types of measures, specialists and caregivers.
To provide better diagnosis and treatment, a
multidisciplinary team approach is required. The
members of this multidisciplinary team include
doctors of primary cancers, radiologists, pathologists,
orthopaedists, radiotherapists, clinical oncologists,
palliative caregivers, rehabilitation doctors, dentists,
nurses, pharmacists, physical therapists, occupational
therapists, medical social workers, etc. Medical
evidence was extracted from published articles
describing meta-analyses or randomised controlled
trials concerning patients with bone metastases
mainly from 2003 to 2013, and a guideline was
developed according to the Medical Information
Network Distribution Service Handbook for
Clinical Practice Guideline Development 2014.
Multidisciplinary team meetings are helpful in
diagnosis and treatment. Clinical benefits such as
physical or psychological palliation obtained using the
multidisciplinary team approaches are apparent.
We established a guideline describing each specialty
field, to improve understanding of the different fields
among the specialists, who can further provide
appropriate treatment, and to improve patients’
outcomes.
INTRODUCTION
Bone metastasis is a devastating condition
that can have a negative impact on the lives
of patients with advanced cancer in many
ways. Patients may experience limitations in
the activities of daily living (ADL), decreases
in quality of life (QOL), threat of survival
and increases in medical expenses.
Large-scale aetiological studies on the preva-
lence or incidence of bone metastasis have
not been conducted in Japan or in other
countries. A smaller study on autopsy cases
over the period from 1959 to 1997 recorded
by the Shikoku Cancer Center in Japan indi-
cated that the frequencies of bone metastasis
varied among cancers; they were as high as
75% in cancers such as of the breast and
prostate, and as low as 22% in stomach and
colon cancers.
Recently, the number of cancer survivors
pertaining to breast and colorectal cancers
has globally increased, and the 5-year survival
rates are ≥60% and ≥85%, respectively. In
many countries, the 5-year survival rate for
prostate cancer is ≥95%.
1
An increase in the
survival time may increase the incidence of
bone metastasis.
Recently, cancer chemotherapy has also
made considerable progress in increasing
survival of patients with far-advanced cancer.
For example, gefitinib improved disease-free
survival of epidermal growth factor receptor
(EGFR) mutant non-small cell lung cancer
(NSCLC).
2
Pertuzumab and trastuzumab
increased the median overall survival (OS) of
patients with EGFR 2-positive metastatic
breast cancer.
3
In addition to these therapeutic measures,
agents that target bone metastatic lesions
have provided clinical benefits to patients.
Medicines targeting bone metastasis include
Shibata H, et al.ESMO Open 2016;1:e000037. doi:10.1136/esmoopen-2016-000037 1
Open Access Review
bone-modifying agents (BMAs) and radiopharmaceuti-
cals. To date, zoledronic acid (ZA) is the most promising
of the bisphosphonates (BPs). Denosumab (D-mab),
another potent BMA, which targets the receptor activa-
tor of nuclear factor κ-B ligand, has also been approved
for skeletal-related events (SREs). βEmitters such as
strontium-89 (
89
Sr) and samarium-153 (
153
Sm) have
been shown to be effective for palliation of cancer pain
induced by bone metastases.
Furthermore, surgical and interventional measures
such as vertebroplasty and ablation have been devel-
oped. Caregivers should consider comprehensive strat-
egies to treat patients with bone metastasis, using
multimodal measures.
METHODS
The guideline was developed according to the Medical
Information Network Distribution Service (MINDS)
Handbook for Clinical Practice Guideline Development
2014. The clinical algorithm is depicted in figure 1, and
clinical questions (box 1) were derived on the basis of
this algorithm.
Medical evidence was extracted from published arti-
cles describing meta-analyses or randomised controlled
trials (RCTs) in PubMed, the Cochrane Library,
CINAHL and the Japan Medical Abstracts Society. A sys-
tematic literature search was performed by Japan
Library Association, mainly from 2003 to 2013. Medical
evidence was evaluated critically and divided into four
levels, A–D, covering estimated effects with higher reli-
ability (A) to those that were mere speculations (D). On
the basis of these levels, preliminary recommendations
were elicited. Forward questions were fundamentally
written in Patient, Intervention, Comparison, Outcome
style. For forward questions, the synopsis of recommen-
dations was assessed as strong or weak. To achieve con-
sensus, majority voting (>70%) of the conference was
adopted according to the Delphi technique.
RESULTS
Diagnostic procedures
Symptoms (CQ 1)
‘Spinal cord compression (SpCC) and hypercalcaemia
need to be treated emergently’. Among SREs, SpCC and
malignant hypercalcaemia (MHC) should be emergently
treated. The frequencies of SpCC and MHC are
reported to be 3% and 13% in breast cancer, 8% and
1% in prostate cancer, and 4% and 4% in lung cancer,
and other cancers, respectively.
4–6
These cancers are
asymptomatic in the very early stage; therefore, careful
examination is required. Symptoms of SpCC are back
pain, listlessness of the lower limb and cauda equina syn-
drome.
78
Symptoms of MHC are anorexia, nausea,
Figure 1 Clinical algorithm of diagnosis and treatment of bone metastasis guideline. BMA, bone-modifying agent; CQ, Clinical
Question; DIC, disseminated intravascular coagulation; EBR, external beam radiation; PVP, percutaneous vertebroplasty; RCC,
renal cell carcinoma; RECIST, Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumor; RFA, radiofrequency ablation; thy CA, thyroid cancer.
2Shibata H, et al.ESMO Open 2016;1:e000037. doi:10.1136/esmoopen-2016-000037
Open Access
Box 1 Table Clinical Questions and Answers
CQ 1. What are the symptoms induced by bone metastasis that necessitate emergent treatment?
A. Spinal cord compression and hypercalcemia need to be treated emergently.
CQ 2. What kinds of imaging are useful to diagnose bone metastasis?
A. Bone scintigraphy,
18
F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/CT and MRI are useful to diagnose bone metastasis.
CQ 3. When is pathological examination needed?
A. It is needed when diagnosis is difficult, in primary unknown cancers, or in cases with multiple cancers.
CQ 4. Does the presence of bone metastasis affect the patient’s prognosis?
A. Bone metastasis at diagnosis might affect the prognosis.
CQ 5. Is surgery beneficial to treat spinal metastasis with spinal cord compression?
A. Surgery is effective for functional improvement.
(Weak, Evidence B)
CQ 6. Is surgery beneficial to treat long bone metastasis with pathological fracture or those at risk?
A. Surgery is beneficial for pain relief and/or functional improvement.
(Strong, Evidence C)
CQ 7. Is the use of instrumentation beneficial in bone metastasis?
A. Instruments are beneficial for treatment and prevention of pathological fracture.
(Strong, Evidence C)
CQ 8. Is external beam radiation beneficial in bone metastasis?
A. External beam radiation is beneficial for relief from pain.
(Strong, Evidence A)
CQ 9. Is vertebroplasty beneficial in bone metastasis?
A. Vertebroplasty is beneficial for inoperable cases to sooner relieve pain on movement.
(Weak, Evidence C)
CQ 10. Is ablation is beneficial in bone metastasis?
A. Ablation is beneficial to relieve pain.
(not approved in Japan, Evidence C)
CQ 11. Are bone-modifying agents (BMAs) beneficial in bone metastasis of lung cancer?
A. Zoledronic acid (ZA) and denosumab (D-mab) are beneficial to SREs, regardless of symptoms.
(Strong, Evidence A)
CQ 12. Are BMAs beneficial in bone metastasis of breast cancer?
A. ZA, pamidronic acid and D-mab are beneficial in treating SREs.
(Strong, Evidence A)
CQ 13. Are BMAs beneficial in bone metastasis of prostate cancer?
A. ZA and D-mab are beneficial in treating SREs among castration resistant cases.
(Strong, Evidence A)
CQ 14. Are BMAs beneficial in bone lesions of multiple myeloma?
A. Bisphosphonates are beneficial in treating SREs.
(Strong, Evidence A)
CQ 15. Are BMAs beneficial in bone metastasis of the other cancers?
A. BMAs are beneficial in treating SREs of the other cancers.
(Weak, Evidence C)
CQ 16. What are the adverse events with BMAs to be cautious of?
A. Osteonecrosis of the jaw, renal toxicity, hypocalcaemia and flu-like illness should raise caution.
CQ 17. What kinds of biomarkers are useful to monitor the effects?
A. No biomarkers are recommended for practice.
CQ 18. What kinds of imaging are useful to monitor the effects of therapeutic measures to bone metastasis?
A. Osteolytic or mixed bone metastases with soft tissue components can be monitored with CT or MRI.
CQ 19. Are non-opioids effective to relieve pain of bone metastasis?
A. Non-opioids are effective to relieve pain.
(Strong, Evidence C)
CQ 20. Are opioids effective to relieve pain of bone metastasis?
A. Opioids are effective to relieve pain.
(Strong, Evidence C)
CQ 21. Are radiopharmaceuticals effective to relieve pain of bone metastasis?
A. Radiopharmaceuticals are beneficial to relieve pain in valid cases with the other measures.
(Weak, Evidence B).
CQ 22. Is Rehabilitation beneficial in bone metastasis?
A. Rehabilitation is beneficial to improve activities of daily living and quality of life, and to prevent disuse syndrome.
(Weak, Evidence C).
CQ 23. Is patient education beneficial in bone metastasis?
A. Patient education is beneficial in bone metastasis.
Shibata H, et al.ESMO Open 2016;1:e000037. doi:10.1136/esmoopen-2016-000037 3
Open Access
fatigue, polyuria, muscle weakness, hyporeflexia, confu-
sion, tremor, torpor, etc.
9
Imaging (CQ 2)
‘Bone scintigraphy (BS),
18
F-fluorodeoxyglucose posi-
tron emission tomography (PET) and magnetic reson-
ance imaging (MRI) are useful to diagnose bone
metastasis’. BS,
18
F-fluorodeoxyglucose PET, and MRI
are recommended as practical imaging measures to
detect bone metastasis. A meta-analysis of BS combined
with single-photon emission CT (SPECT) indicated that
the sensitivity was 86% and specificity was 81%.
10
A
meta-analysis showed that the sensitivity of PET com-
bined with CT (PET/CT) was 90% and the specificity of
this combination was 97%.
10
For cancers with a high risk
of metastasis, including breast cancer, PET/CT is recom-
mended in the National Comprehensive Cancer
Network (NCCN) guideline.
11
PET is better than CT in
diagnosing osteolytic lesions; however, when combined
with CT, its ability to detect osteoplastic lesions
increases.
12
MRI, particularly whole-body MRI, can
detect bone metastasis with sensitivity and specificity of
91% and 95%, respectively.
13
Using diffusion-weighted
MRI (DW-MRI), the specificity increases to 96%.
13
Radiography and CT are useful in evaluating the size of
lesions or the rigidity of skeletal structures;
14
sodium
18
F-fluoride has high diagnostic potential and
accuracy.
15
Histopathology (CQ 3)
‘Histopathology is needed when diagnosis is difficult,
and in primary unknown cancers or in cases with mul-
tiple cancers’. In many cases where bone metastasis is
confirmed based on the patient’s clinical course, histo-
pathological analysis is often omitted; however, in case of
an unknown primary and ≥2 synchronous or metachro-
nous cancers, it is necessary.
16
Tissue materials can be
obtained using CT-guided percutaneous needle or open
biopsy; aspiration cytology, despite the lower accuracy, is
an alternative.
17 18
Prognosis (CQ 4)
‘Bone metastasis at diagnosis might affect the progno-
sis’. In the Danish National Patient Registry (DNPR;
1997–2007), the 5-year survival rates of patients with
prostate cancer with and without bone metastasis at
diagnosis were 3% and 56%, respectively.
19
Among
registrants in the Surveillance Epidemiology, and End
Results programme in the USA (1999–2005), the HRs
for risk of death in patients with prostate cancer with
and without SREs were 10.2 and 6.6, respectively.
20
In DNPR, the 5-year survival rates of patients with
breast cancer with and without bone metastasis at diag-
nosis were 8.3% and 75.8%, respectively.
21
Katagiri
et al
22
proposed a scoring system that correlated with
prognosis.
TREATMENTS
Surgery
Metastatic spinal tumour (CQ 5)
‘It is weakly suggested that surgery is effective for func-
tional improvement’. Surgery for spinal metastasis is
beneficial for tumour resection as well as for relieving
pain and improving neurological manifestations.
Significant improvement pertaining to walking was
observed in patients treated with surgery plus radiation
compared with that in patients treated with radiation
alone;
23
however, a report by Rades et al
24
did not
confirm these results. Surgery for spinal metastases
because of radiosensitive tumours such as multiple
myeloma, malignant lymphoma and leukaemia, should
be avoided.
23–25
Surgery is not recommended in cases
where ≥48 h are passed since complete paralysis or
when prognosis is predicted within 6 months.
23 26
For
spinal metastasis of breast or prostate cancer, hormonal
treatment or radiation is the first choice before
surgery.
23 27
Operative methods for spinal metastasis
differ according to the sites and sizes of metastases. A
posterior approach, decompression by laminectomy and
spinal fixation, are the most common procedures. Total
en bloc spondylectomy may be beneficial when the lesion
is single and long survival is expected.
26
Metastasis to long bones (CQ 6)
‘It is strongly suggested that surgery is beneficial for
pain relief and/or functional improvement’. Surgery is
beneficial to repair mechanical ruptures, relieve pain,
and improve diseased limb function and QOL during
pathological fractures or at risk fractures.
28–30
The out-
comes of surgery for at risk fractures are better than
those of surgery for pathological fractures in many
aspects such as those concerning blood loss, period of
hospitalisation and functional recovery.
31 32
Mirels
reported a scoring system for risk of fracture.
33–35
Linden claimed that axial cortical involvement >30 mm
and circumferential cortical involvement >50% are pre-
dictive of fracture.
36
Operative methods are divided into
two types: internal fixation and prosthesis replacement.
External fixation (CQ 7)
‘It is strongly suggested that instruments are beneficial
for treatment and prevention of pathological fractures’.
Braces are used for various purposes such as relief from
pain, and preservation and stabilisation of diseased
bone. Braces are appropriate for postoperative fixation.
For pathological and at risk fractures, surgery is superior
to non-surgical conservative treatment in increasing
QOL. Among conservative approaches such as resting
and rehabilitation, braces and body casts, braces are best
for thoracic and lumbar spinal compression (compres-
sion rate <50%) without neurological symptoms.
37
Emergently, external fixation using splint and weight-
bearing orthoses such as crutches are suitable for long-
bone metastasis.
4Shibata H, et al.ESMO Open 2016;1:e000037. doi:10.1136/esmoopen-2016-000037
Open Access
External beam radiotherapy (CQ 8)
‘It is strongly suggested that external beam radiation
(EBR) is beneficial for relief from pain’. EBR can relieve
pain caused by bone metastasis without SpCC or patho-
logical fracture in 59–73% of cases,
38–40
and neuropathic
pain in 53–61% of cases.
41
Dose fractionation is per-
formed using multifractionated radiation (MFR) such as
30 Gy divided into 10 fractions (30 Gy/10 Fr or 20 Gy/5
Fr). Single-dose irradiation (SDI) such as 8 Gy is also
performed. In some studies, the effects on pain using
either MFR or SDI were identical; pain relief was
achieved in 60–73% patients using SDI and in 59–73%
patients using MFR.
38–40
Pain relief was achieved within
3 weeks in half the total number of cases where the
treatment was effective. Neuropathic pain was relieved in
53% of patients treated using SDI and in 61% of patients
treated using MFR.
41
Regarding the duration of pain
relief, there was no significant difference between SDI
and MFR; the median time for recurrence was
2.4 months after SDI and 3.7 months after MFR.
41
The
average duration of pain relief was 29 weeks after SDI
and 30 weeks after MFR.
42
Additional radiation is per-
formed in 7–8% of MFR patients and in 20–22% of SDI
patients.
38–40
Additional radiation relieved pain in 58%
of patients in another study comprising 33–66% of
patients in whom the first radiation treatment was not
effective.
43
Additional SDI and MFR relieved pain in 66–
70% and 33–57% of patients, respectively.
43
It is not
clear whether EBR can completely prevent pathological
fracture. The incidence of fracture was identical by both
methods (SDI=3.3% vs MFR=3.0%).
40
Thus, fixation of
the damaged cortex of a femoral metastasis >30 mm in
longitudinal length is necessary before irradiation.
44
The frequency of SpCC after EBR is reduced to
2.8–3.0% using SDI, and 1.6–1.9% using MFR.
39 40
Vertebroplasty (CQ 9)
‘It is weakly suggested that vertebroplasty is beneficial
for inoperable cases to sooner relieve pain on move-
ment’. Percutaneous vertebroplasty (PVP) can relieve
pain associated with movement of weighted vertebrae or
relieve neuropathic pain when surgery is not indicated.
Complications such as acute phase of infection, haemor-
rhagic diathesis and severe heart disease, are contraindi-
cative.
45
PVP is applicable for radio-resistant patients,
and an additive effect is obtained by combining it with
radiotherapy. PVP relieves pain within 1–3days.
46
Polymethyl methacrylate is commonly used as cement.
Extreme care should be taken to not leak cement out of
the targeted vertebral body. As the therapeutic effect
does not correlate with cement volume, it is recom-
mended that only the minimum amount needed should
be used. Balloon kyphoplasty is performed to attempt
kyphosis of the diseased vertebra to avoid leakage.
47
Ablation (CQ 10)
‘Ablation is beneficial for pain relief’. Radiofrequency
ablation (RFA) is used to kill tumours by heating, using
image-guided needle centesis. RFA is one measure to
relieve pain from bone metastasis, based on results from
two RCTs.
47 48
RFA is used to treat resistant patients or
patients unresponsive to radiotherapy; however, in
Japan, it is not covered by medical insurance.
Cryoablation is an alternative method to relieve pain.
49
Bone modifying agents
Lung cancer (CQ 11)
‘It is strongly suggested that zoledronic acid (ZA) and
denosumab (D-mab) are beneficial to SREs, regardless
of symptoms’. RCTs comparing ZA with placebo that
target NSCLC (50% of total participants) and small cell
lung cancer (8%) have shown the occurrence rate of
SRE treated with ZA to be 38.9% and that with placebo
to be 48.0% (p=0.039).
50 51
RCT comparing ZA with
D-mab showed that the duration of the first SRE was
16.3 months using ZA and 20.6 months using D-mab
(40% were NSCLC).
52
Non-inferiority of D-mab to ZA is
proven (p=0.06). For SREs that needed radiotherapy,
the grade of pain and dosage of opioids were signifi-
cantly suppressed in the D-mab group.
53
Exploratory
analysis of this trial indicated that OS was prolonged in
the D-mab group.
54
Breast cancer (CQ 12)
‘It is strongly suggested that ZA, pamidronic acid (PA)
and D-mab are beneficial to SREs’. An RCT comparing
PA with placebo showed that PA could significantly
decrease SREs of breast cancer from 4.0 to 2.5 per
person-year. PA was effective with chemotherapy or
hormonal treatment.
55
In the breast cancer subgroup,
ZA significantly decreased SREs by 20%.
56
Improvements in QOL score, progression free survival
(PFS) and OS were not achieved. Ibandronate decreased
SREs and improved pain and QOL scores.
57–60
An RCT
comparing ZA with D-mab showed that D-mab signifi-
cantly decreased the first SREs by 18% and the second
SREs by 23%.
61 62
Improvement in QOL score was
achieved in 37.1% of the D-mab group and in 31.4% of
the ZA group.
61 62
No improvements were observed in
PFS and OS. A meta-analysis showed 8 of 10 papers
reporting BPs to significantly reduce SREs (relative risk
(RR) = 0.85). ZA significantly reduced SREs compared
with PA (RR=0.80).
63
D-mab significantly reduced SREs
compared with ZA (RR=0.78).
Prostate cancer (CQ13)
‘It is strongly suggested that ZA and D-mab are benefi-
cial to SREs of castration resistant cases’. Hormonal
treatment is effective in most prostate cancers, regardless
of bone metastasis. In many cases, combined androgen
blockade with lutenising hormone-releasing hormone
analogue, antagonist and a non-steroidal antiandrogen
agent, is used.
64
Prostate cancer is sensitive to hormonal
treatment in the first 2 years on average, but finally turns
into castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC).
65 66
Clodronate combined with hormonal treatment
Shibata H, et al.ESMO Open 2016;1:e000037. doi:10.1136/esmoopen-2016-000037 5
Open Access
prolongs survival compared with placebo (RR=0.77).
67
The survival benefit of ZA or D-mab with hormonal
treatment is controversial. An RCT comparing ZA with
placebo against CRPC indicated that the frequency of
SREs was 33.2% in the ZA group and 44.2% in the
placebo group (p=0.021). OS was longer in the ZA
group than in the placebo group (546 vs 464 days,
p=0.094).
568
An RCT comparing D-mab with ZA against
CRPC showed that the duration to the first SRE was
20.7 months in the D-mab group and 17.1 months in the
ZA group (p=0.0085).
69
Multiple myeloma (CQ 14)
‘It is strongly suggested that BPs are beneficial to SREs’.
Combination therapy of PA with chemotherapy for
bone lesions reduced the occurrence of SREs compared
with chemotherapy alone (24% vs 41%, p<0.001).
70
Clodronate with chemotherapy inhibited the progres-
sion of osteolytic lesions compared with chemotherapy
alone (12% vs 24%, p=0.026).
71
An RCT comparing PA
with ZA to treat breast cancer and multiple myeloma
showed that they had similar effects.
72
An RCT compar-
ing the first-line treatment using ZA plus chemotherapy
with that of clodronate plus chemotherapy showed that
SREs were significantly suppressed in the ZA group
(HR=0.74, p=0.0004).
73
A meta-analysis comparing BPs
with placebo showed that BPs significantly suppressed
pathological fracture of vertebrae (RR=0.74) and occur-
rence of SREs (RR=0.80), and improved pain
(RR=0.75).
74
A better survival benefit with ZA was
achieved compared with clodronate (HR=0.84,
p=0.0118).
73
A meta-analysis comparing all types of BPs
to placebo showed that BPs had no survival benefits.
However, ZA showed a survival benefit (HR=0.61).
74
An
RCT comparing ZA with D-mab showed that D-mab sig-
nificantly prolonged the duration to the first SRE (14.4
vs 19.0 months, p=0.022).
75
However, the survival
benefit with D-mab was inferior to that with ZA
(HR=2.26).
An RCT comparing melphalan plus prednisone (MP)
with MP plus bortezomib (VMP) showed that VMP sup-
pressed the progression of bone lesions and decreased
the need for radiation.
76 77
Other cancers (CQ 15)
‘It is weakly suggested that BMAs are beneficial to SREs
of the other cancers’. In an RCT comparing ZA with
placebo, other cancers such as gastrointestinal cancer
accounted for 10% of the total.
50
Subset analysis showed
that ZA had a similar effect on SREs. A meta-analysis of
three RCTs comparing ZA with D-mab showed that
D-mab significantly suppressed SREs.
75
No survival
benefit of D-mab was observed.
Combination with radiotherapy
There are no meta-analyses of combination treatment
with BMAs and radiation; however, >200 retrospective
studies have been reported,
78–82
where radiation with
BPs has been effective. The American Society of Clinical
Oncology (ASCO) guideline for bone metastasis of
breast cancer recommends radiation with BPs for
SREs.
83 84
Adverse events (CQ 16)
‘Osteonecrosis of the jaw (ONJ), renal toxicity, hypocal-
caemia and flu-like illness should be cautious’.
Osteonecrosis of the jaw
The frequency of ONJ induced by BPs varies from 1% to
10%.
85
D-mab induces ONJ with the same frequency.
61
Longer duration of BP injection increases the risk;
the incidence at 4–12 months is 1.5%, whereas that at
27–48 months is 7.7%.
85
Appropriate oral hygiene
decreases ONJ.
86 87
Patients should maintain good oral
hygiene, and have dental examinations and preventive
dental treatment prior to initiating therapy.
83
Tooth
extraction, oral infection and artificial dentures are risk
factors.
88
Extraction should be completed before admin-
istration and takes 14–21 days to recover from.
89
Renal toxicities
The frequency of renal toxicities with ZA is 4.9–
44.5%.
65152616990–93
However, many of these toxicities
remain within grade 1 or 2 and are reversible. Risk
factors are older age (>65 years), combination use with
non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) or cis-
platinum, diabetes mellitus and multiple myeloma.
Multiplicity and longer duration (>2 years) increase the
risk.
93
The median time to occurrence is 4.7–5.4
months.
94 95
The risk for acute renal failure increases in
low creatinine clearance rates (CCR, <60 mL/min).
52 61
Dose modification according to CCR is recommended.
The frequency of renal toxicities with D-mab is
3.3–14.7% for all grades and 0.4% for grades >3.
52 61 69
Hypocalcaemia
The frequency of hypocalcaemia with ZA is 3.3–
9.0%.
53 61 69 75 94
The frequency of clinical symptoms or
for grades >3 is 1.0–4.7%.
53 69 74 96
The frequency with
D-mab is 1.7–10.8% for all grades and 1.3–5.1% for
grades >3.
53 61 68 75
Administration of BMA without
vitamin D and oral calcium elevates the frequency of
hypocalcaemia by 5–6 times.
53 61 68
In case of D-mab, a
daily supply of vitamin D (natural form; 400 IU) and
oral calcium (500 mg) is necessary. Risk factors are low
serum calcium before treatment, and renal dysfunc-
tion.
97 98
The onset is ≤10 days in most cases and early
monitoring is important.
Others
Other adverse events include flu-like reactions, which
occur within 3 days; their frequencies are 17.7–22.0%
with ZA and 8.4–10.4% with D-mab.
61 68 92
Atypical
femoral fractures are rare severe adverse events asso-
ciated with ZA.
99
6Shibata H, et al.ESMO Open 2016;1:e000037. doi:10.1136/esmoopen-2016-000037
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Monitoring of treatment
Biomarkers (CQ 17)
‘No biomarkers are suggested for practice’. Broun
reported that elevation of type I collagen cross-linked
N-telopeptide (NTx) or bone-specific alkaline phosphat-
ase during treatment indicated poor prognosis of lung
and prostate cancers with bone metastases.
100
Coleman
et al
101
reported that, in cases with high urine NTx
(uNTx), SRE or disease progression risks were 4–6 times
higher than those with low uNTx. The prognostic value
of uNTx is apparent, but the predictive value for thera-
peutic effects is not. Longer survival was achieved in
cases where uNTx was normalised using ZA compared
with cases where uNTx was not normalised
(RR=0.52).
102
Clinical events such as death or SREs were
preceded by elevation of bone turnover markers (BTMs)
in >90% of cases. Inverse phenomena were observed
only in 5.6% of breast cancers and 5.9% of prostate
cancers.
103
The ASCO guideline does not recommend
measurement of BTMs to monitor BMA effects.
87
Imaging (CQ 18)
‘Osteolytic or mixed bone metastases with soft tissue
components can be monitored with CT or MRI’.
Evaluation using radiography, BS, or PET is not suitable
for bone metastasis, according to the Response
Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumor V.1.1.
104
Osteolytic
and mixed lesions can be evaluated by CT or MRI.
There are no imaging devices for evaluating osteoplastic
lesions. The Prostate Cancer Working Group 2 in the
USA set the criteria for progressive disease of osteoplas-
tic new lesions using BS.
105
The bone scan index (BSI)
is a quantitative method for detecting possible metastatic
lesions as a percentage of total bone quantity. Changes
in BSI before and after treatment show better correl-
ation with prognosis than changes in prostate specific
antigen (PSA).
106
DW-MRI can measure water diffusion,
which reflects cellularity as an apparent diffusion coeffi-
cient (ADC).
107
The possibility of ADC to predict
tumour response clinically is now under verification.
Others
The patient-reported outcome (PRO) measures a
patients’own health condition by self-reporting. PRO
has recently been considered to provide a real benefitto
patients; for example, McGill-Melzack reported benefits
of using the pain intensity scale and brief pain inventory
scale.
108 109
Palliation
Non-opioids (CQ 19)
‘It is strongly suggested that non-opioids are effective to
relieve pain’. The WHO has developed a three-step
ladder for cancer pain, and non-opioids are the first
choice. No RCTs have compared non-opioids on a large
scale.
110 111
Joishy and Walsh
112
reported that the
dosage of morphine could be reduced by ketorolac.
Combined effects of opioids and non-opioids are still
controversial.
110 111
Other reviews have concluded that
acetaminophen, NSAIDs and steroids are effective.
Steroids are not analgaesics but are effective for redu-
cing pain flare induced by radiation.
113
Opioids (CQ 20)
‘It is strongly suggested that opioids are effective to
relieve pain’. Many observational studies indicate that
opioids are effective for pain of bone metastases.
114 115
Comparison between the fentanyl patch and codeine–
acetaminophen combination indicated that fentanyl had
significantly superior effects.
116
Bone metastatic pains
are divided into two types: continuous pain at rest and
breakthrough pain. The treatment strategy differs for
each type. A systemic review found that the utility of
rescue drugs for breakthrough pain and the dosage
should be individually adjusted.
117
For neuropathic pain,
when not fully relieved by opioids, combination use with
adjuvant analgaesics should be considered.
Radiopharmaceuticals (CQ 21)
‘It is weakly suggested that radiopharmaceuticals are
beneficial to relieve pain in valid cases with the other
measures’. A meta-analysis showed that radiopharmaceu-
ticals were effective for 1–6 months.
118
Two-thirds of
patients treated using
89
Sr showed pain relief.
119 120
89Sr
contributed to reducing the dosage of analgaesics and
improving patients’QOL.
118
In Japan,
153
Sm and
rhenium-186 are not covered by medical insurance.
89
Sr
is particularly effective for prostate cancer because it is
highly taken up by osteoplastic lesions as calcium
mimetics.
118 120
In many reports, the effect of
89
Sr is
identical to that of EBR, but the incidences of nausea
and vomiting are lower using
89
Sr.
119
The effect of a
combination of
89
Sr and EBR remains controver-
sial.
118 119
The combination of
89
Sr and ZA was effective
for prostate cancer.
121
An RCT comparing the combin-
ation of
89
Sr and ZA with
89
Sr alone for asymptomatic
bone metastasis of NSCLC showed that the combination
reduced the occurrence of SREs and improved OS.
122
The antitumour effects of
89
Sr, including reduction of
PSA levels or improved survival in prostate cancer, are
reported in a few cases.
123
89Sr can be administered
every 3 months. Reported adverse events include bone
marrow suppression; thrombocytopaenia is most
common (15–50%), but the grade is <2 in most
cases.
118–120
Leucocytopaenia is less frequent; however,
caution is required when
89
Sr is combined with chemo-
therapy. An RCT showed that
223
Ra significantly
increased OS and the time to occurrence of SREs with
low toxicities compared with placebo.
124
Rehabilitation and patient education (CQ 22, 23)
‘It is weakly suggested that rehabilitation is beneficial to
improve ADL and QOL, and to prevent disuse syn-
drome’. Rehabilitation is beneficial in terms of providing
pain relief, prevention of degeneration, improvement of
ADL and QOL, and increased survival. An RCT
Shibata H, et al.ESMO Open 2016;1:e000037. doi:10.1136/esmoopen-2016-000037 7
Open Access
comparing treatment plus rehabilitation with treatment
alone of symptomatic spinal metastasis showed signifi-
cant improvements in pain score (p<0.001), dosage of
analgaesics (p<0.001) and depression status.
125
Tang
retrospectively showed that rehabilitation for spinal
metastasis significantly improved the scores of functional
independence measures and recovered function.
126
Resting in bed is good for preventing SREs but leads to
reduction of ADL and QOL, and results in disuse syn-
drome, which can cause sepsis or respiratory failure and
increase the risk of death.
‘Patient education is beneficial to bone metastasis’.
PRO-SELF is an education programme provided in the
patient’s home and by telephone. An RCT comparing
PRO-SELF with normal care showed that knowledge of
cancer pain reduced pain scores.
127–129
A systematic
review of educational intervention showed that it could
reduce pain scores but could not improve patient’s
QOL.
130
CONCLUSION
Diagnosis to treatment for bone metastasis needs various
types of measures, specialists and caregivers.
Consideration of the status of diseases, as well as of the
background of patients, should be taken. For this
purpose, a multidisciplinary team is necessary. In treat-
ing, multidisciplinary meetings are helpful. To collabor-
ate with other specialists, a guideline describing each
specialty field is necessary. The clinical benefits, such as
physical or psychological palliation, obtained by the
multidisciplinary team approaches, are described in
some papers.
131–133
Further, registration in addition to
multidisciplinary team approaches could be advanta-
geous to monitor the therapeutic outcomes according to
the guideline.
Author affiliations
1
Department of Clinical Oncology, Akita University Graduate School of
Medicine, Akita, Japan
2
Department of Clinical Oncology, Juntendo University, Tokyo, Japan
3
Department of Clinical Oncology, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan
4
Department of Rehabilitation, Chiba Prefectural University of Health Sciences,
Chiba, Japan
5
Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Osaka Medical Center for Cancer and
Cardiovascular Diseases, Osaka, Japan
6
Department of Gastroenterology, National Hospital Organization Shikoku
Cancer Center, Matsuyama, Japan
7
Division of Hematology, Tochigi Cancer Center, Utsunomiya, Japan
8
Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Aichi Cancer Center
Hospital, Nagoya, Japan
9
Division of Palliative Medicine, Shizuoka Cancer Center, Sunto-gun, Japan
10
Department for Cancer Chemotherapy, Iwate Prefectural Central Hospital,
Morioka, Japan
11
Division of Musculoskeletal Oncology, National Cancer Center Hospital,
Tokyo, Japan
12
Department of Nuclear Medicine, Kanazawa University Hospital, Kanazawa,
Japan
13
Department of Breast and Medical Oncology, National Cancer Center
Hospital, Tokyo, Japan
14
Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Ishikawa Prefectural
Central Hospital, Kanazawa, Japan
15
Department of Clinical Pharmaceutics, School of Pharmacy, Iwate Medical
University, Morioka, Japan
16
Department of Renal and Genitourinary Surgery, Hokkaido University
Graduate School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan
17
Department of Medical Oncology, Cancer Institute Hospital of Japanese
Foundation for Cancer Research, Tokyo, Japan
18
Division of Medical Oncology, Hematology and Infectious Diseases, Fukuoka
University Hospital, Fukuoka, Japan
19
Seirei Christopher University, Hamamatsu, Japan
20
Research Institute for Diseases of the Chest, Graduate School of Medical
Sciences, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan
21
Department of Diagnostic Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Tokyo Medical
and Dental University, Tokyo, Japan
22
Department of Radiology, KKR Sapporo Medical Center, Sapporo, Japan
23
Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Tohoku University Graduate School of
Medicine, Sendai, Japan
24
Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Keio University School of Medicine,
Tokyo, Japan
25
Department of Pathology 2, Kawasaki Medical School, Kurashiki, Japan
26
Department of Urology, Cancer Institute Hospital, Japanese Foundation for
Cancer Research, Tokyo, Japan
27
Division of Dentistry and Oral Surgery, Shizuoka Cancer Center, Sunto-gun,
Japan
28
Department of Palliative Care, Saitama Cancer Center, Kitaadachi-gun, Japan
29
Department of Hemodialysis and Surgery, Chemotherapy Research Institute,
International University of Health and Welfare, Ichikawa, Japan
Twitter Follow Hiroyuki Shibata at @Shibacchi
Acknowledgements The authors thank the members of the guideline
committee and the JSMO guideline evaluation committee for their reviews. In
particular, they acknowledge Kei Muro, Takayuki Yoshino and Yutaka Fujiwara,
for their critical reviews of the final manuscript in Japanese. They also thank
Chiharu Tada and Hiromi Nishizawa, secretaries of the JSMO, and Yuji
Tatsugami, for their help with editing the Japanese version of the guideline,
and ENAGO for their English language review.
Funding The total cost of developing this guideline was borne by JSMO.
Competing interests S Kato, sponsored research (Chugai Pharmaceutical Co,
Ltd); IO, honoraria (Taiho Pharmaceutical Co, Ltd); S Kinuya, data and safety
monitoring board (Bayer Yakuhin, Ltd); NS, honoraria (Novartis Pharma); ST,
honoraria (Astellas Pharma Inc, AstraZeneca plc, Daiichi Sankyo Co, Ltd,
Novartis Pharma), sponsored research (Sanofi, Zenyaku Kogyo Co, Ltd, Taiho
Pharmaceutical Co, Ltd, Boehringer Ingelheim Japan, Chugai Pharmaceutical
Co, Ltd, Novartis Pharma); YT, honoraria (Janssen Pharma); K Takayama20,
consultation and honoraria (Clinical Research Support Center Kyushu,
AstraZeneca plc, Chugai Pharmaceutical Co, Ltd, Eli Lilly Japan, PfizerJapan
Inc), sponsored research (Kyowa Hakko Kirin Co, Ltd, plc, Daiichi Sankyo Co,
Ltd, Chugai Pharmaceutical Co, Ltd, Eli Lilly Japan, Novartis Pharma, Bristol-
Myers Squibb); UT, consultation and honoraria (Micron Inc, SymBio
Pharmaceutical Co, Ltd, Chugai Pharmaceutical Co, Ltd, Nihon Medi-Physics
Co, Ltd); HM, sponsored research (Eisai Co, Ltd, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co,
Ltd); T Yuasa, honoraria (Novartis Pharma, PfizerJapan Inc).
Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.
Open Access This is an Open Access article distributed in accordance with
the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license,
which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-
commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided
the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://
creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
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