Wilms tumour affects approximately one person per 10,000 worldwide before the age of 15 years. People of African descent may have slightly higher rates of Wilms tumor. The peak age of Wilms tumour is 3 to 4 years and most cases occur before the age of 10 years.

A genetic predisposition to Wilms Tumor in individuals with aniridia has been established, due to deletions in the p13 band on chromosome 11.

Although not specific to one mode of management, lesion size, patient sex, or follow-up, the recurrence rate for chondroblastoma is relatively high, and has been shown in select studies to be dependent upon the anatomical location, method of treatment, and biological aggressiveness of the initial lesion. The rate of recurrence is highly variable, ranging between 5% and 40%, as study results are generally inconclusive. However, local recurrence for long bone lesions is around 10%, with chondroblastoma in flat bones having higher recurrence and more complications. Recurrences are more common in cases involving an open epiphyseal plate where they can be attributed to inadequate curettage to avoid damage. Lesions of the proximal femur are particularly problematic because of difficulties accessing the femoral head for complete excision. Chondroblastoma may recur in the soft tissue surrounding the initial lesion, especially in the case of incomplete curettage. Recurrences have been shown to occur between 5 months and 7 years after initial treatment and are generally treated with repeat curettage and excision of affected soft-tissue. No histological differences have been seen between recurrent and non-recurrent chondroblastomas.

Rarely, more aggressive chondroblastomas can metastasize. The most common location for metastases is the lung, with some cases also involving secondary bone sites, soft tissue, skin, or the liver. The prevalence of metastatic chondroblastoma, however, is quite low and is believed to be less than 1%. There is no relationship established between metastasis and previous surgery, non-surgical treatment, anatomical location, or patient age. Survival of patients with metastatic lesions is better when the metastases are surgically resectable, as chemotherapy has been shown to have little to no benefit. Prognosis is bleak for patients with malignant chondroblastomas that are resistant to surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy. However, patients with resectable metastases have survived for several years following diagnosis.

While recurrence is the most common complication of chondroblastoma other issues include post-surgery infection, degenerative joint disease, pathological fractures, failure of bone grafts, pre-mature epiphyseal closure, functional impairment, and malignant transformation. Complications are less common in patients presenting with chondroblastoma in accessible areas. Overall, patients with more classical chondroblastoma (appearing in long bones, typical presentation) have better prognoses than patients with atypical chondroblastoma (flat bones, skull, etc.).

Prognosis depends on how early the cancer is discovered and treated. For the least aggressive grade, about 90% of patients survive more than five years after diagnosis. People usually have a good survival rate at the low grade volume of cancer. For the most aggressive grade, only 10% of patients will survive one year.

Tumors may recur in the future. Follow up scans are extremely important for chondrosarcoma to make sure there has been no recurrence or metastasis, which usually occurs in the lungs.

The cause is unknown. Patients may have a history of enchondroma or osteochondroma. A small minority of secondary chondrosarcomas occur in patients with Maffucci syndrome and Ollier disease.

It has been associated with faulty isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 and 2 enzymes, which are also associated with gliomas and leukemias.

Currently, the genetic or environmental factors that predispose an individual for chondroblastoma are not well known or understood. Chondroblastoma affects males more often than females at a ratio of 2:1 in most clinical reports. Furthermore, it is most often observed in young patients that are skeletally immature, with most cases diagnosed in the second decade of life. Approximately 92% of patients presenting with chondroblastoma are younger than 30 years. There is no indication of a racial predilection for chondroblastoma.

Dr. Sidney Farber, founder of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and his colleagues achieved the first remissions in Wilms tumor in the 1950s. By employing the antibiotic actinomycin D in addition to surgery and radiation therapy, they boosted cure rates from 40 to 89 percent.

A benign tumor is a mass of cells (tumor) that lacks the ability to invade neighboring tissue or metastasize. Benign tumors do not spread into, or invade, nearby tissues. Benign tumors can sometimes be quite large, however. When removed, they usually do not grow back, whereas malignant tumors sometimes do. Unlike most benign tumors elsewhere in the body, benign brain tumors can be life threatening. Benign tumors generally have a slower growth rate than malignant tumors and the tumor cells are usually more differentiated (cells have normal features). Benign tumors are typically surrounded by an outer surface (fibrous sheath of connective tissue) or remain with the epithelium. Common examples of benign tumors include moles and uterine fibroids.

Although benign tumors will not metastasize or locally invade tissues, some types may still produce negative health effects. The growth of benign tumors produces a "mass effect" that can compress tissues and may cause nerve damage, reduction of blood to an area of the body (ischaemia), tissue death (necrosis) and organ damage. The mass effect of tumors is more prominent if the tumor is within an enclosed space such as the cranium, respiratory tract, sinus or inside bones. Tumors of endocrine tissues may overproduce certain hormones, especially when the cells are well differentiated. Examples include thyroid adenomas and adrenocortical adenomas.

Although most benign tumors are not life-threatening, many types of benign tumors have the potential to become cancerous (malignant) through a process known as tumour progression. For this reason and other possible negative health effects, some benign tumors are removed by surgery.

Cartilage tumors form in Cartilage tissue. They can be either benign (Chondroma) or malignant (chondrosarcoma). Frequently these tumors appear in bone, and not in pre-existing cartilage tissue. In some cases tumors that formed in other tissues may produce a cartilage-like matrix, an example of this is the pleomorphic adenoma of the sexual reproduction salivary glands.

Benign tumors are very diverse, and may be asymptomatic or may cause specific symptoms depending on their anatomic location and tissue type. They grow outwards, producing large rounded masses, which can cause what is known as a "mass effect". This growth can cause compression of local tissues or organs, which can cause many effects such as blockage of ducts, reduced blood flow (ischaemia), tissue death (necrosis) and nerve pain or damage. Some tumors also produce hormones that can lead to life-threatening situations. Insulinomas can produce large amounts of insulin leading to hypoglycemia. Pituitary adenomas can cause elevated levels of hormones such as growth hormone and insulin-like growth factor-1, which cause acromegaly; prolactin; ACTH and cortisol, which cause Cushings disease; TSH, which causes hyperthyroidism; and FSH and LH. Bowel intussusception can occur with various benign colonic tumors. Cosmetic effects can be caused by tumors, especially those of the skin, possibly causing psychological effects on the person with the tumor. Vascular tumors can bleed, which in some cases can be substantial, leading to anemia.

Hamartomas, while generally benign, can cause problems due to their location. For example, when located on the skin, especially on the face or neck, they can be very disfiguring. Cases have been reported of hamartomas the size of a small orange. They may obstruct practically any organ in the body, such as the colon, eye, etc. They are particularly likely to cause major health issues when located in the hypothalamus, kidneys, lips, or spleen. They can be removed surgically if necessary, and are not likely to recur. Prognosis will depend upon the location and size of the lesion, as well as the overall health of the patient.

This form of cancer is often seen in those who chew tobacco or use snuff orally, so much so that it is sometimes referred to as "Snuff dipper's cancer." Chewing betel nuts is an additional risk factor commonly seen in Taiwan.

Several research groups are investigating cancer stem cells and their potential to cause tumors along with genes and proteins causative in different phenotypes.Radiotherapy for unrelated conditions may be a rare cause.

- Familial cases where the deletion of chromosome 13q14 inactivates the retinoblastoma gene is associated with a high risk of osteosarcoma development.

- Bone dysplasias, including Paget's disease of bone, fibrous dysplasia, enchondromatosis, and hereditary multiple exostoses, increase the risk of osteosarcoma.

- Li–Fraumeni syndrome (germline TP53 mutation) is a predisposing factor for osteosarcoma development.

- Rothmund–Thomson syndrome (i.e. autosomal recessive association of congenital bone defects, hair and skin dysplasias, hypogonadism, and cataracts) is associated with increased risk of this disease.

- Large doses of Sr-90 emission from nuclear reactor, nicknamed bone seeker increases the risk of bone cancer and leukemia in animals, and is presumed to do so in people.

Despite persistent rumors suggesting otherwise, there is no clear association between water fluoridation and cancer or deaths due to cancer, both for cancer in general and also specifically for bone cancer and osteosarcoma. Series of research concluded that concentration of fluoride in water doesn't associate with osteosarcoma. The beliefs regarding association of fluoride exposure and osteosarcoma stem from a study of US National Toxicology program in 1990, which showed uncertain evidence of association of fluoride and osteosarcoma in male rats. But there is still no solid evidence of cancer-causing tendency of fluoride in mice. Fluoridation of water has been practiced around the world to improve citizens' dental health. It is also deemed as major health success. Fluoride concentration levels in water supplies are regulated, such as United States Environmental Protection Agency regulates fluoride levels to not be greater than 4 milligrams per liter. Actually, water supplies already have natural occurring fluoride, but many communities chose to add more fluoride to the point that it can reduce tooth decay. Fluoride is also known for its ability to cause new bone formation. Yet, further research shows no osteosarcoma risks from fluoridated water in humans. Most of the research involved counting number of osteosarcoma patients cases in particular areas which has difference concentrations of fluoride in drinking water. The statistic analysis of the data shows no significant difference in occurrences of osteosarcoma cases in different fluoridated regions. Another important research involved collecting bone samples from osteosarcoma patients to measure fluoride concentration and compare them to bone samples of newly diagnosed malignant bone tumors. The result is that the median fluoride concentrations in bone samples of osteosarcoma patients and tumor controls are not significantly different. Not only fluoride concentration in bones, Fluoride exposures of osteosarcoma patients are also proven to be not significantly different from healthy people.

Prognosis is separated into three groups.

- Stage I osteosarcoma is rare and includes parosteal osteosarcoma or low-grade central osteosarcoma. It has an excellent prognosis (>90%) with wide resection.

- Stage II prognosis depends on the site of the tumor (proximal tibia, femur, pelvis, etc.), size of the tumor mass, and the degree of necrosis from neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Other pathological factors such as the degree of p-glycoprotein, whether the tumor is cxcr4-positive, or Her2-positive are also important, as these are associated with distant metastases to the lung. The prognosis for patients with metastatic osteosarcoma improves with longer times to metastases, (more than 12 months to 4 months), a smaller number of metastases, and their resectability. It is better to have fewer metastases than longer time to metastases. Those with a longer length of time (more than 24 months) and few nodules (two or fewer) have the best prognosis, with a two-year survival after the metastases of 50%, five-year of 40%, and 10-year of 20%. If metastases are both local and regional, the prognosis is worse.

- Initial presentation of stage III osteosarcoma with lung metastases depends on the resectability of the primary tumor and lung nodules, degree of necrosis of the primary tumor, and maybe the number of metastases. Overall survival prognosis is about 30%.

Deaths due to malignant neoplasms of the bones and joints account for an unknown number of childhood cancer deaths. Mortality rates due to osteosarcoma have been declining at about 1.3% per year. Long-term survival probabilities for osteosarcoma have improved dramatically during the late 20th century and approximated 68% in 2009.

Sarcomas are quite rare with only 15,000 new cases per year in the United States. Sarcomas therefore represent about one percent of the 1.5 million new cancer diagnoses in that country each year.

Sarcomas affect people of all ages. Approximately 50% of bone sarcomas and 20% of soft tissue sarcomas are diagnosed in people under the age of 35. Some sarcomas, such as leiomyosarcoma, chondrosarcoma, and gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST), are more common in adults than in children. Most high-grade bone sarcomas, including Ewing's sarcoma and osteosarcoma, are much more common in children and young adults.

A malignant mixed Müllerian tumor, also known as malignant mixed mesodermal tumor, MMMT and carcinosarcoma, is a malignant neoplasm found in the uterus, the ovaries, the fallopian tubes and other parts of the body that contains both carcinomatous (epithelial tissue) and sarcomatous (connective tissue) components. It is divided into two types, homologous (in which the sarcomatous component is made of tissues found in the uterus such as endometrial, fibrous and/or smooth muscle tissues) and a heterologous type (made up of tissues not found in the uterus, such as cartilage, skeletal muscle and/or bone). MMMT account for between two and five percent of all tumors derived from the body of the uterus, and are found predominantly in postmenopausal women with an average age of 66 years. Risk factors are similar to those of adenocarcinomas and include obesity, exogenous estrogen therapies, and nulliparity. Less well-understood but potential risk factors include tamoxifen therapy and pelvic irradiation.

A chondroma is a benign cartilaginous tumor, which is encapsulated with a lobular growing pattern.

Tumor cells (chondrocytes, cartilaginous cells) resemble normal cells and produce the cartilaginous matrix (amorphous, basophilic material).

Characteristic features of this tumor include the vascular axes within the tumor, which make the distinction with normal hyaline cartilage.

Based upon location, a chondroma can be described as an enchondroma or ecchondroma.

- enchondroma - tumor grows within the bone and expands it.

- ecchondroma - grows outward from the bone and this is rare.

Treatment

- best left alone

- if it causes fractures (enchondroma) or is unsightly it should be removed by curettage and the defect filled with bone graft.

Considered part of the PTEN hamartoma tumor syndrome (PHTS), which also includes Bannayan-Riley-Ruvalcaba syndrome, Proteus syndrome, and Proteus-like syndrome, Cowden syndrome is a serious genetic disorder characterized by multiple hamartomas. Usually skin hamartomas exist, and commonly (in about 66% of cases) hamartoma of the thyroid gland exists. Additional growths can form in many parts of the body, especially in bones, CNS, the eyes, the genitourinary tract, the GI tract, and mucosa. The hamartomas themselves may cause symptoms or even death, but morbidity is more often associated with increased occurrence of malignancies, usually in the breast or thyroid.

One person in every 100,000 is affected. Ollier disease is not normally diagnosed until toddler years because it is not very visible.

Verrucous carcinoma (VC) is an uncommon variant of squamous cell carcinoma. This form of cancer is often seen in those who chew tobacco or use snuff orally, so much so that it is sometimes referred to as "Snuff dipper's cancer."

Most patients with verrucous carcinoma have a good prognosis. Local recurrence is not uncommon, but metastasis to distant parts of the body is rare. Patients with oral verrucous carcinoma may be at greater risk of a second oral squamous cell carcinoma, for which the prognosis is worse.

Verrucous carcinoma may occur in various head and neck locations, as well as in the genitalia. The oral cavity is the most common site of this tumor. The ages range from 50 to 80 years with a male predominance and a median age of 67 years. VC may grow large in size, resulting in the destruction of adjacent tissue, such as bone and cartilage.

The diagnosis of VC is established by close communication between surgeons and pathologists.

Surgeons must provide adequate specimens including the full thickness of the tumors and adjacent uninvolved mucosa for correct diagnoses.

Surgery is considered as the treatment of choice, but the extent of surgical margin and the adjuvant radiotherapy are still controversial.

The major risk factors are cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption, while betel nut is an additional factor in Taiwan. Different gene mutation sites in head and neck cancer between western countries and Taiwan have been reported. The presentation of VC originated from exposure to different carcinogens may not be the same.

Extraskeletal chondroma (also known as "Chondroma of soft parts") is a cutaneous condition, a rare benign tumor of mature cartilage.

Ollier disease carries a high risk of skeletal, visceral and brain malignancy which occurs in approximately 25% of patients. Juvenile granulosa cell tumour has been associated with the disease. The incidence of secondary chondrosarcoma in Ollier disease is not known, but may be as high as 25%, pelvis and shoulder girdle being the commonest locations. A related disorder called Maffucci syndrome named after Angelo Maffucci is characterized by enchondromas associated with multiple hemangiomas which usually occur in the hands and feet. Maffucci syndrome carries a higher risk for cancer.

There is debate over the naming of MMMT; the term carcinosarcoma was formerly used to describe lesions with homologous tumors, and "malignant mixed Müllerian tumor" or "mixed mesodermal tumor" was used to describe heterologous tumors. While "carcinosarcoma" now considered standard, "malignant mixed Müllerian tumor" has a lengthy history within gynecological literature and is expected to continue to be used. The naming issue to a certain extent reflects histological characteristics and development of the tumors, in which the different types of tissues are believed to either develop separately and join into a single mass (the "collision" theory), that an adenocarcinoma stimulates the stroma to create a tumor (the "composition" theory), or that the tumor is the result of a stem cell that differentiates into different cell types (the "combination" theory). "Collision" tumors are normally easily recognized and not considered true MMMTs; the "combination" theory is most widely held, and is due to evidence that the tumors develop from a single line of cells, developing in a fashion similar to the fundus of the uterus from the Müllerian duct - first from a stem cell into a population of cells, that then differentiates into epithelial and stromal components.

There is evidence that some tumors are better explained by the composition theory, due to the aggressive nature of the epithelial cells involved which tend to metastasize much more readily than the sarcomal component. The behavior of MMMT overall is more related to the type and grade of the epithelium than the sarcoma, which suggests the sarcomal portion is an atypical "bystander" than primary driver of the tumor. Despite this, when purely endometrial tumors are compared to MMMTs, the MMMT tumor tends to have a worse prognosis.

Limited normal functions and movements are caused by osteochondromas growing slowly and inwardly. The majority of osteochondromas are symptomless and are found incidentally. Each individual with osteochondroma may experience symptoms differently and most of the time individuals will experience no symptoms at all. Some of the most common symptoms are a hard immobile painless palpable mass, adjacent muscle soreness, and pressure or irritation with heavy exercising.

Major symptoms arise when complications such as fractures, bone deformity or mechanical joint problems occur. If the occurrence of an osteochondroma is near a nerve or a blood vessel, the affected limb can experience numbness, weakness, loss of pulse or color change. Periodic changes in the blood flow can also take place. Approximately 20% of patients experiencing nerve compression commonly acknowledge vascular compression, arterial thrombosis, aneurysm, and pseudoaneurysm. Formation of pseudoaneurysm and venous thrombosis lead to claudication, pain, acute ischemia, and symptoms of phlebitis. If the tumor is found under a tendon, it can cause pain during movement causing restriction of joint motion. Pain can also occur due to bursal inflammation, swelling or fracture at the base of the tumor stalk. Some of the clinical signs and symptoms of malignant osteochondroma are pain, swelling, and mass enlargement.

An enchondroma may occur as an individual tumor or several tumors. The conditions that involve multiple lesions include the following:

- Ollier disease (enchondromatosis) - when multiple sites in the body develop the tumors. Ollier disease is very rare.

- Maffucci's syndrome - a combination of multiple tumors and angiomas (benign tumors made up of blood vessels).

While the exact cause of enchondroma is not known, it is believed to occur either as an overgrowth of the cartilage that lines the ends of the bones, or as a persistent growth of original, embryonic cartilage.