Pediatric Oncology : Childhood cancer is the leading cause of disease-related deaths among the pediatric population. It is important to note that childhood cancer is very different from adult cancer. Therefore, early diagnosis and timely follow-up by an oncologist are crucial. Worldwide, approximately 400,000 new cases of childhood cancer are diagnosed each year.
According to Dr Kavitha Vijayakumar, AVP & Lab Operations, Metropolis Healthcare Ltd, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh & Telangana, childhood cancer is different from cancers that affect adults because risk factors such as tobacco, alcohol consumption, obesity and infections can cause cancer in adults. Childhood cancer is caused by genetic or malignant etiology. Since there are no risk factors associated with these cancers, there are no primary preventive measures. As a result, secondary prevention in the form of early diagnosis is important.
The most common cancers in children include leukemia (blood cancer), central nervous system cancers (brain tumors), and lymphoma. In contrast, epithelial and germ cell tumors are more common in older children than in children under 10 years of age.
Pediatric cancers are more biologically active and therefore tend to be more advanced in stage and aggressive in nature when diagnosed. While adult cancers are detected through screening procedures, it is not possible to screen cancers affecting children as there is less information available about the natural causes of these diseases.
Diagnosis of childhood cancer is often difficult due to the lack of local symptoms. In these diseases, fever, vomiting, lack of appetite, weight loss, enlarged lymph nodes and bone pain are the main complaints. High suspicion at the clinical level is important for the diagnosis of childhood cancer. But this diagnosis is largely delayed because often the above symptoms may also be associated with delay in normal physical development or other childhood diseases.
If the fever persists for a long time or a weight loss of more than 10 percent of the body weight occurs in a short period of time, it may be an indication that the child should be evaluated for malignancy. In such cases, early diagnosis with laboratory and radiology tests and consultation with a pediatric oncologist is important.
Since childhood cancer is often diagnosed at an advanced stage, early diagnosis allows for more intensive treatment, better chances of recovery and longer life expectancy. For better cure rates, better diagnostic setup and easy access to treatment centres that provide advanced targeted therapies are also essential.
If there is a family history of hereditary cancer diseases, screening should be done as far as possible with the help of molecular studies which help in early diagnosis of hereditary cancer diseases.
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