Neuroblastoma in a Developing Country: Miles to Go

Excerpt

Neuroblastoma (NB) is the most common intraabdominal and extracranial solid tumor in children, accounting for approximately 8% to 10% of all childhood malignancies. As per the ‘Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), National Cancer Registry Program’, the relative proportion of NB (and ganglioneuroblastoma) in children (0–14 y), in seven hospital-based cancer registries across India varied from 2.4% to 7.5%. Neuroblastoma is the most common malignancy diagnosed during infancy. It can arise from anywhere along the sympathetic chain and usually presents as a mass arising in the neck, mediastinum, abdomen or pelvis. Neuroblastoma is a disease of early childhood with approximately 90% of patients presenting before the age of five years. In infants, these tumors may regress spontaneously, or they may mature into a benign ganglioneuroma. Neuroblastoma in older children is usually unresectable or is metastatic at presentation, and the overall prognosis is poor [1, 2]. …