This article requires a subscription to view the full text. If you have a subscription you may use the login form below to view the article. Access to this article can also be purchased.
- Richa Sharma, MD*
- Jesse Mer, MD†
- Alex Lion, DO MPH‡
- Terry A. Vik, MD‡
- *Department of Pediatrics;
- †Department of Radiology;
- ‡Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Hematology-Oncology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN
AUTHOR DISCLOSURE
Drs Sharma, Mer, Lion, and Vik have disclosed no financial relationships relevant to this article. This commentary does not contain a discussion of an unapproved/investigative use of a commercial product/device.
- CBC:
- complete blood cell
- CT:
- computed tomography
- HVA:
- homovanillic acid
- IHC:
- immunohistochemical
- IL-2:
- interleukin-2
- mIBG I-123:
- metaiodobenzylguanidine
- MRI:
- magnetic resonance imaging
- OMS:
- opsoclonus myoclonus syndrome
- VMA:
- vanillylmandelic acid
- WBC:
- white blood cell
Education Gap
Pediatricians play a pivotal role in the diagnosis of neuroblastoma and as such should be aware of the elusive signs and symptoms to provide clinical surveillance, appropriate referral, and medical support as part of the patient’s multidisciplinary team.
Objectives
After completing this article, readers should be able to:
Identify signs and symptoms of neuroblastoma.
Identify patients who require emergency care for a life-threatening presentation.
Discuss the basics of clinical presentation, diagnostics, and management of neuroblastoma.
Introduction
Pediatric cancers occur in 171 per 1 million children in the United States each year and are the leading cause of disease-associated death in children. (1) Neuroblastoma is not only the most common cancer in infancy but also the most prevalent solid tumor outside the cranium, (2) and it sometimes requires the most aggressive treatment plan in pediatric oncology. Therefore, pediatricians should be familiar with clinical presentations that should prompt appropriate and timely referral. In this review, we present neuroblastoma, which exemplifies several principles of pediatric oncology, including its multidisciplinary treatment approach.
Epidemiology
The annual incidence of neuroblastoma is approximately 700 cases in North America. (1) In a review of national cancer registries from 2001 through 2009, a diagnosis of neuroblastoma or ganglioneuroblastoma was found in approximately 6% of the cases. (1) Neuroblastoma is more common in the white population (9.7 per 1 million) than in the African American population (6.8 per 1 million) (2) and more common in males (8.5 per 1 million) than in females (7.6 per 1 million). (3) Although the median age at diagnosis of neuroblastoma is 18 months, (4) there is a wide age range, from in utero diagnosis to …
Individual Login
Institutional Login
You may be able to gain access using your login credentials for your institution. Contact your librarian or administrator if you do not have a username and password.
Log in through your institution
Pay Per Article - You may access this article (from the computer you are currently using) for 2 days for US$25.00
Regain Access - You can regain access to a recent Pay per Article purchase if your access period has not yet expired.
In this issue
Jump to section
Related Articles
Cited By...
- No citing articles found.