ABSTRACT
Objective:
To describe the clinical and epidemiological characteristics and survival outcomes of children with neuroblastoma (NB) treated at a pediatric oncology center from 1991 to 2012.
Methods:
A retrospective study with clinical and epidemiological data from 258 patients with neuroblastoma treated at a pediatric oncology center from 1991 to 2012, using medical records.
Results:
The average age of the children at diagnosis was 40.5±46.4 months with a median age of 28.9 months (interquartile range 42.2). The male:female ratio was 1.3:1, and 1% of the patients were asymptomatic. The most frequent manifestations were: fever (25%), abdominal pain (22%), abdominal mass (19%), and bone pain (19%). The mean time from symptom onset to diagnosis was 3.0±4.8 months. The most common location of the tumor was the abdomen (63%). Metastases occurred in the bone marrow (37%) and in the bone (33%). Overall survival (OS) and event-free survival (EFS) in five years were 62 and 52%, respectively. The main cause of death was the progression of the disease (72%).
Conclusions:
The clinical features of children with neuroblastoma are variable and mostly nonspecific, which makes clinical recognition difficult and, in general, too late. In children less than 5 years old, with an abdominal mass and/or bone pain, irritability, and a fever from an unknown cause, neuroblastoma should be considered as a possible diagnosis.
Keywords:
Neuroblastoma; Child; Epidemiology
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