Article: Growing bones: Special paste helps mend bad breaks when pieces are missing.(Knight Ridder Newspapers)

DETROIT _ When Stacy Pilarski entered Detroit Receiving Hospital earlier this month, she was missing 4-5 inches of bone from her lower left leg.

In August 1999, a random shooting shattered her tibia and tore muscles and nerves. Unable to walk or play her beloved softball since then, the 31-year-old has been living in various relatives' homes, making it through the days _ and the longer nights _ on painkillers. A titanium rod _ now a permanent fixture _ was implanted in her leg soon after the incident and has kept her leg from collapsing.

But during a 2-hour operation, the gap in Pilarski's leg was repaired. The missing bone was replaced with a mixture of ...

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