General Information
- Each year, an estimated 4,00,000 children and adolescents of 0-19 years old develop cancer.
- The most common types of childhood cancers include leukemias, brain cancers, lymphomas and solid tumours, such as neuroblastoma and Wilms tumours.
- In high-income countries, where comprehensive services are generally accessible, more than 80% of children with cancer are cured. In low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), less than 30% are cured.
- Outcomes of children with cancer in India have improved over last decade.
- Childhood cancer cannot generally be prevented or identified through screening.
- Most childhood cancers can be cured with generic medicines and other forms of treatment, including surgery and radiotherapy. Treatment of childhood cancer can be cost-effective in all income settings.
- Avoidable deaths from childhood cancers in LMICs result from lack of diagnosis, misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis, obstacles to accessing care, abandonment of treatment, death from toxicity, and relapse.
- Childhood cancer data systems are needed to drive continuous improvements in the quality of care, and to inform policy decisions.
To get more information on childhood cancer, please have a look at the links mentioned below:
