What is neuroblastoma?
Neuroblastoma is a rare form of childhood cancer that is particularly aggressive. With “neuro” meaning “nerve” and “blastoma” meaning “collection of tumor cells”, it is a tumor arising from particular nerve cells, which run in a chain-like fashion up the back of the child's abdomen and chest and into the skull, following the line of the spinal cord. The tumor occurs either in the sympathetic nervous system or closely associated adrenal glands and is usually, although not always, located in the abdomen. Since the symptoms of the disease tend to be varied and vague, some two-thirds of children are not diagnosed until the disease is widespread. It is a tumor almost exclusively of childhood and there is no exactly comparable tumor in an adult.
What causes neuroblastoma?
There is no known cause of neuroblastoma however, most physicians believe it is an accidental cell growth that occurs during normal development of the sympathetic nervous system.
What are my child’s chances of survival?
NB varies greatly in its behavior and prognosis. Neuroblastoma exhibits a wide range of behavior. Some neuroblastomas may just go away without treatment (spontaneously regress) in infants. Other neuroblastomas may resist very intensive treatment, and in these cases, NB is known as one of the most aggressive and difficult to cure childhood cancers. More than half of neuroblastoma patients have disease at diagnosis that has already spread (metastasized) to other parts of the body. While only 4% of all childhood cancers are the high-risk form of neuroblastoma, it is responsible for 15% of all pediatric cancer deaths. Funding for research and drug development is desperately needed to improve the survival rate.
What are my child’s treatment options?
Neuroblastoma has its own special treatment that is different from any treatment undergone by anyone else you know who has had cancer. Despite intensive courses of chemotherapy and often initial success in treating the disease, the child often relapses, making this one of the most lethal of all childhood cancers.
How common is neuroblastoma?
Neuroblastoma is a very rare cancer. Of approximately 13,000 new cases of childhood cancer in the U.S. each year, only about 650-700 are neuroblastoma. There is similar incidence in other countries and no clear differences between ethnic groups. A slightly higher incidence is seen in boys, about 55% of all neuroblastoma patients are boys.
Romans 8:28
"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him who have been called according to his purpose."
