Osteochondroma after bone marrow transplantation

A radiation-induced osteochondroma (OC) is one of the common complications in long-term survivors of childhood malignancy. It was reported that OC was associated with localized high-dose irradiation to the tumor bed. We experienced four cases that developed OC after bone marrow transplantation (BMT) for childhood malignancy from September 1982 to September 2000. They were all boys and less than eight years old when they received conditioning based on total body irradiation (TBI). In the same period, there were 58 survivors after BMT with TBI-based conditioning. The duration between BMT and the diagnosis of OC was more than 3 years. All four cases presented multiple bone lesions. OC was not observed in patients that received non-TBI conditioning. TBI appears to have an effect on the pathogenesis of OC. (author)