Chordomas are rare malignant neoplasms. Most chordomas are found at skull base, sacrum and cervical spine. We present a rare case of chordoma with lumbar spine origin and bone metastasis after operation and radiotherapy. In this case, no local recurrence was found in two years after tumor removal and adjuvant radiotherapy, but metastases to right scapula and left femur shaft were found afterward. Besides, the treatment of chordomas remains a challenge. We review the literatures of the clinical feature, pathophysiology, treatment modalities and prognosis of chordomas, and also the newest advances of radiotherapy, including proton beam radiotherapy (RT) and heavy charged particles RT (carbon ions) for treating chordomas.