Enchondroma: Meaning in a Radiology Report

Enchondroma

Also written as: chondroma, cartilaginous lesion, chondroid lesion

An enchondroma is a benign growth of cartilage inside a bone. It is often found by chance, especially in the hand or near the knee or shoulder.

Seen on: X-ray, MRI

How it reads in a report

A 2.4 cm lesion with ring-and-arc calcifications in the proximal humeral metaphysis, without endosteal scalloping, likely an enchondroma.

What it means

Cartilage is the firm, rubbery tissue found in joints and growing bones. An enchondroma is a patch of cartilage inside the marrow space of a bone. It probably grows from cells left behind by the growth plate in childhood. It often holds specks of calcium that look like small rings and arcs on X-ray and CT. On MRI it has a lumpy outline and looks very bright on T2 images, because cartilage holds a lot of water.

When it matters

Enchondromas are common and usually cause no symptoms. In the hands they are almost always benign, though they can weaken the bone enough for a small fracture. In larger bones, doctors check for signs of a rare, slow-growing cartilage cancer called chondrosarcoma. These include pain coming from the lesion, large size, or the bone wall worn thin from inside. Most are simply watched, sometimes with a follow-up X-ray or MRI.

Questions to ask your doctor

Does anything about it look different from a typical enchondroma?
Do I need a follow-up X-ray or MRI, and when?
Could it be causing my pain, or was it found by chance?

General information, not medical advice. What a finding means for you depends on your symptoms, your history and the images themselves, so talk your results through with a doctor.