Atypical cartilage tumours (ACTs) are non-malignant tumours located in the long bones. These tumours rarely cause symptoms and are often incidental findings on medical imaging.
Until recently, ACTs were removed surgically, but this dissertation shows that this is no longer necessary.
Instead, active surveillance for these tumours is recommended. Follow-up studies showed that only a small proportion of tumours slowly enlarge without developing features of malignancy. An interesting finding is that in about a third of the patients, the tumour was partially replaced over time by normal bone marrow.
Based on the results of this thesis, the standard treatment of ACTs has been changed from surgery to active surveillance.
Claudia Deckers (1993) obtained her medical degree at the Radboud University in 2018. Onwards she worked on her PhD research at the Department of Orthopaedics of Radboudumc under the supervision of prof. dr. H.W.B. Schreuder, dr. I.C.M. van der Geest and dr. E.F. Dierselhuis. Currently, Claudia is in her third year of orthopaedic residency.