Background: Osteosarcoma is a malignant mesenchymal tumor whose cancerous cells produce osteoid matrix and the most common primary malignant long bone tumor. It is a disease of young adults and accounts for approximately 20% of the sarcomas occurring in young adults. However the incidence is only 5% of the osteosarcomas occurring in the jaw. The disease is even rarer in children.
Case Report: A case of a 15-year-old male who presented with a progressive and aggressive left jaw mass of about 8 months is presented. Patient was initially diagnosed as a case of Burkitt’s lymphoma. The skull radiograph done showed an expansile mixed osteoblastic and osteolytic destruction of the left mandible
associated with “sun-ray” spiculations with associated dental displacement and loss of lamina dura. Excision biopsy and histopathology of the tumour taken confirmed the diagnosis of osteosarcoma of the left mandible (with osteoblasts predominating).
Conclusions: The differential diagnosis, radiological features and treatment of this lesion are discussed. Plain radiograph is able to provide useful information on the extent and associated findings of the disease entity. The chest radiograph showed that there were no pulmonary or thoracic cage metastases. Treatment was by surgical resection.

Keywords: differentials, radiographic diagnosis, mandibular osteosarcoma, surgical resection