National Journal of Laboratory Medicine (Jan 2017)

Spectrum of Pediatric Malignancies at a Tertiary Care Centre in Western Uttar Pradesh

  • Rashmi Chauhan,
  • Amit Tyagi,
  • Nidhi Verma,
  • Meenakshi Tyagi,
  • Preeti Singh,
  • Abhishek Singh

DOI
https://doi.org/10.7860/NJLM/2017/24325:2199
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 6, no. 1
pp. PO23 – PO27

Abstract

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Introduction: Pediatric malignancies, although uncommon, are amongst the leading causes of death in children. These tumors show a distinctive incidence, histology and biological behaviour from those in adults. Aim: This study was conducted to find out the spectrum of pediatric malignancies in LLRM Medical College and associated SVBP Hospital, Meerut, India. Materials and Methods: A total of 51 cases were studied retrospectively over a period of five years. Patients, 0-14 years of age, diagnosed as a case of malignancy by means of peripheral blood smears and bone marrow studies, cytological and histopathological examination, were included in the study. The records of these tumors were retrieved and analyzed, focussing on the prevalence according to age, sex and types of tumors. Results: Maximum number of cases (50.98%; 26/51) were seen in 10-14 years age group, followed by 29.41% (15/51) cases in 5-9 years age group and 19.61% (10/51) in 0-4 years. Males were affected in 68.63% (35/51) cases, while females were affected in 31.37% (16/51) cases. Male to female ratio was 2.2:1. Leukemias were found to be the most common pediatric cancers (29.4%; 15/51 cases), followed by lymphomas (17.65%; 09/51 cases), malignant bone tumors (11.8%; 06/51 cases), renal malignancies (9.8%; 05/51 cases), brain tumors, soft tissue sarcomas and germ cell tumors (7.8%; 04/51 cases each). In <5 years and 5-9 years age group, Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) was the predominant malignancy (30% and 26.67% respectively). In 10-14 years of age, both ALL and Osteosarcoma accounted for the majority cases (15.38% each). Conclusion: This institution based study provides an insight into the pattern of distribution of childhood cancers in Western Uttar Pradesh region, which is important in the planning and evaluation of health strategies. In India, where there is scarcity of data because of lack of a dedicated pediatric cancer registry, such studies play a major role in effective disease management for this small but important group of patients.

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