If your child is diagnosed with osteosarcoma or Ewing sarcoma, both different types of bone cancer, near or around the knee, your doctor may recommend a procedure called rotationplasty. Other options include amputation and limb salvage surgery. Rotationplasty is a type of autograft that generally provides greater function than a standard above-the-knee amputation or limb salvage surgery. Rotationplasty gives a child a greater chance of participating in competitive sports. Ankle Serves as Knee Joint During this radical operation, the surgeon removes the affected part of the leg including the cancerous tumor near the knee. Then the lower section of the leg (shin bone, ankle and foot) is rotated 180 degrees so that the foot points backwards. The surgeon reattaches that part of the leg to the remaining thigh bone. As a result, the ankle now serves as a replacement knee joint. The patient...

When your child is diagnosed with cancer, you have to learn a whole new language in just a few days. Terms, phrases, and abbreviations are used by healthcare professionals who deal with cancer every day. And it can leave you dazed. But sometimes it helps to use an acronym, for instance MIBG – which stands for metaiodeobenzylguanidine. Just try saying that ten times in a row! MIGB is used to treat neuroblastoma. This clear liquid consists of two materials: metaiodobenzylguanidine, or MIBG, and I-131, a radioactive material. The MIBG carries the radioactive I-131 specifically to your child’s tumors, where it targets the cancer cells over many weeks. Understanding the MIBG treatment process Before infusion Before your child receives MIBG, oral potassium iodide (also referred to as “SSKI”) is given to your child. This protects the thyroid from I-131. Your child will continue to take this...