Spinal tumors — whether arising in the spine itself (primary) or spreading from cancer elsewhere in the body (metastatic) — can cause progressive back pain, fractures, and neurological compromise. Surgical treatment relieves pressure on the spinal cord and nerves, stabilizes the spine, and is coordinated with medical and radiation oncology for comprehensive care.
What are the symptoms?
- Persistent back or neck pain that is often worse at night or at rest — a red flag distinguishing it from typical mechanical pain
- Pain unrelieved by rest or position change and not clearly tied to activity
- Progressive weakness, numbness, or tingling in the arms or legs
- Difficulty walking or loss of balance from spinal cord compression
- Bowel or bladder dysfunction in advanced cases (requires urgent evaluation)
- Unexplained weight loss or a known history of cancer accompanying new spine pain
What causes it?
- Metastatic disease: The most common spinal tumors in adults — cancer spreading to the spine from the breast, lung, prostate, kidney, or thyroid
- Primary benign tumors: Osteoid osteoma, osteoblastoma, hemangioma, and giant cell tumor arising in the vertebral bone
- Primary malignant tumors: Chordoma, chondrosarcoma, and osteosarcoma — rare but requiring specialized surgical planning
- Intradural tumors: Meningiomas and nerve sheath tumors (schwannoma, neurofibroma) arising within the spinal canal
How is it diagnosed?
MRI with and without contrast is the primary imaging study, defining the tumor's location, extent, and relationship to the spinal cord and nerves. CT scan assesses the degree of bone destruction and is essential for surgical planning. A biopsy is frequently required to establish the tissue diagnosis — and is planned carefully, since an improperly performed biopsy can compromise later definitive surgery. Staging studies and laboratory work-up are coordinated with the oncology team.
Your Non-Surgical Roadmap — Surgery Is the Last Step
Most patients with this condition get better without surgery. Here's the path Dr. Chavarria follows before an operation is ever on the table:
- 1
Start conservative
Physical therapy, activity changes, anti-inflammatory or nerve medication, and time — the first line for nearly every spine condition.
- 2
Add targeted relief
If symptoms persist, image-guided injections (epidural or nerve blocks) can calm inflammation and pinpoint the source of pain — often avoiding surgery entirely.
- 3
Re-evaluate together
Dr. Chavarria reviews your progress and imaging with you, honestly, and explains exactly where you stand — no pressure, no rush to the OR.
- 4
Surgery — only if it's truly the best option
Reserved for severe or worsening nerve compression, instability, or when conservative care has had a fair chance. When it is right, you'll understand why and what to expect.
Treatment Options in Reno, NV — Conservative Care First
Treatment of spinal tumors is highly individualized and always multi-disciplinary, involving medical oncology, radiation oncology, and spine surgery. For metastatic disease, surgery focuses on decompressing the spinal cord, stabilizing pathologic fractures, and enabling effective radiation — including modern 'separation surgery' that allows precise stereotactic radiosurgery for durable tumor control. For primary tumors, en bloc resection (removing the tumor as a single intact specimen) offers the best oncological outcome. Dr. Chavarria works closely with the patient's full cancer care team to design a treatment plan matched to tumor type, overall health, and prognosis, using minimally invasive techniques when appropriate to speed recovery and allow timely adjuvant therapy.
Treatment Procedures
Spinal Tumor Surgery
Spinal tumors — whether primary bone tumors, intradural tumors, or metastatic disease from cancers originating elsewhere in the body — can cause severe back pain, pathologic fractures, spinal instability, and neurological compromise. Surgical treatment aims to relieve pressure on the spinal cord and nerves, stabilize the spine, and when appropriate, resect the tumor to control local disease.
Learn More →Kyphoplasty
Kyphoplasty is a minimally invasive procedure that treats painful vertebral compression fractures — most commonly caused by osteoporosis — by inserting a balloon into the collapsed vertebra, inflating it to restore height, and filling the cavity with bone cement. Most patients experience dramatic pain relief within 24–48 hours and go home the same or next day.
Learn More →Posterior Cervical Fusion
Posterior cervical fusion approaches the cervical spine from the back of the neck to decompress the spinal cord and stabilize multiple vertebral levels with screws and rods. It is used for conditions where the anterior approach is not sufficient — including multilevel cervical stenosis with myelopathy, cervical instability, deformity, and cases where posterior bone anatomy needs to be directly addressed.
Learn More →Lumbar Spinal Fusion (TLIF/PLIF)
Lumbar spinal fusion permanently connects two or more vertebrae together, eliminating painful motion at an unstable or severely degenerated spinal segment. Techniques such as TLIF (Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion) and PLIF (Posterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion) restore disc height, decompress the nerve, and stabilize the spine — and can be performed with minimally invasive techniques through small incisions.
Learn More →