Medical and Pediatric Oncology 

About: Medical and Pediatric Oncology is an academic journal. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Acute lymphocytic leukemia & Chemotherapy. It has an ISSN identifier of 0098-1532. Over the lifetime, 3236 publications have been published receiving 76025 citations.

Contemporary classification of histiocytic disorders

Abstract: Pathologists and pediatric hematologist/ oncologists of the World Health Organization's Committee on Histiocytic/Reticulum Cell Proliferations and the Reclassification Working Group of the Histiocyte Society present a classification of the histiocytic disorders that primarily affect children. Nosology, based on the lineage of lesional cells and biological behavior, is related to the ontogeny of histiocytes (macrophages and dendritic cells of the immune system). Dendritic cell-related disorders of varied biological behavior are dominated by Langerhans cell histiocytosis, but separate secondary proliferations of dendritic cells must be differentiated. Juvenile xanthogranuloma represents a disorder of dermal dendrocytes, another dendritic cell of skin. The hemophagocytic syndromes are the most common of the macrophage-related disorders of varied biological behavior. Guidelines for distinguishing the exceedingly rare malignant diseases of histiocytes from large cell lymphomas through the use of a battery of special studies are provided.

Study design and cohort characteristics of the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study: a multi-institutional collaborative project.

Abstract: Background Increased attention has been directed toward the long-term health outcomes of survivors of childhood cancer. To facilitate such research, a multi-institutional consortium established the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study (CCSS), a large, diverse, and well-characterized cohort of 5-year survivors of childhood and adolescent cancer. Procedure Eligibility for the CCSS cohort included a selected group of cancer diagnoses prior to age 21 years between 1970–1986 and survival for at least 5 years. Results A total of 20,276 eligible subjects were identified from the 25 contributing institutions, of whom 15% are considered lost to follow-up. Currently, 14,054 subjects (69.3% of the eligible cohort) have participated by completing a 24-page baseline questionnaire. The distribution of first diagnoses includes leukemia (33%), lymphoma (21%), neuroblastoma (7%), CNS tumor (13%), bone tumor (8%), kidney tumor (9%), and soft-tissue sarcoma (9%). Abstraction of medical records for chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and surgical procedures has been successfully completed for 98% of study participants. Overall, 78% received radiotherapy and 73% chemotherapy. Conclusion The CCSS represents the largest and most extensively characterized cohort of childhood and adolescent cancer survivors in North America. It serves as a resource for addressing important issues such as risk of second malignancies, endocrine and reproductive outcome, cardiopulmonary complications, and psychosocial implications, among this unique and ever-growing population. Med. Pediatr. Oncol. 2002;38:229–239. © 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Epidemiology of Wilms tumor

Abstract: Wilms tumor affects approximately one child per 10,000 worldwide before the age of 15 years. Incidence rates appear to be slightly elevated for U.S. and African Blacks in comparison to Whites, but are only half as great among Asians. Several case-control studies have suggested that paternal occupational or maternal hormonal exposures during pregnancy may increase the risk of Wilms tumor, but small numbers of subjects and inconsistencies in the patterns of exposures do not permit firm conclusions to be drawn. It is unlikely that such environmental exposures play a major role in the etiology of Wilms tumor. The median age-at-onset of Wilms tumor is 38 months in the U.S. National Wilms Tumor Study series, with cases in girls occurring on average 6 months later than in boys. Patients with bilateral tumors, aniridia, cryptorchism/hypospadias, Beck-with-Wiedemann syndrome, or intralobar nephrogenic rests tend to be diagnosed much younger than average (median 17-27 months). Those with familial disease or multicentric tumors have intermediate age-at-onset distributions, while those with perilobar nephrogenic rests are diagnosed at older ages. The epidemiologic features suggest that somatic mosaicism, rather than a germline mutation, may be responsible for some of the bilateral and multicentric cases.

Cancer in older adolescents and young adults: Epidemiology, diagnosis, treatment, survival, and importance of clinical trials

Abstract: Cancer in adolescents and young adults has unique features in addition to the special medical, physical, psychological, and social needs of patients in this age group. The spectrum of malignant diseases is different from that in any other period in life, and it is strikingly different from the pattern in older persons. More people 15-25 years of age are diagnosed to have cancer than during the first 15 years of life. During the last 25 years, the incidence of cancer in this age range has increased faster while the increase in their cancer survival rates has been significantly lower than in younger or older patients, especially in comparison to results of the national pediatric cooperative cancer groups. Thus the 5-year outcome in 15-19 year olds with leukemias and sarcomas is not only worse than in younger patients, but also lower in this population at large than in patients of the same age treated at Children's Cancer Group institutions. In the United States, only approximately 5% of 15-25 year olds with cancer are entered onto clinical trials, in contrast to 60-65% of younger patients. Thus, cancer during adolescence and early adult life is an underestimated challenge that merits specific resources, solutions, and an international focus.