Ewing's sarcoma physical examination

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1];Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Suveenkrishna Pothuru, M.B,B.S. [2] Assistant Editor(s)-In-Chief: Michael Maddaleni, B.S.

Overview

Common physical examination findings of Ewing’s sarcoma are fever, localized swelling, and tenderness at the site of the tumor.

The following physical examination findings may be present among patients with Ewing’s sarcoma:

Localized swelling
- Swelling tends to be elastic, tense, tender, hard, rapidly increasing, and accompanied by local heat.^[1]
- Although the tumor can be palpable in some cases due to swelling, there are cases in which the tumor may not be noticed for a long period of time.
- Some tumors such as tumors of the spine, pelvic region, or femur are much deeper and may not cause noticeable swelling at the surface. Also, if the tumor extends along the medullary canal of long bones without expanding out further into the cortex, it would be difficult to detect.^[1]
Tenderness