An analysis of neuroblastoma at a single institution

• Published in: Cancer 1984-05, Vol.53 (10), p.2079-2082
• Main Authors: Thomas, Patrick R. M., Lee, Jeannette Y., Fineberg, Barbara B., Razek, Aly A., Perez, Carlos A., Land, Vita J., Vietti, Teresa J.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Antineoplastic Agents - therapeutic use; Biological and medical sciences; Child; Child, Preschool; Combined Modality Therapy; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Ganglia, Sympathetic; Ganglioneuroma - mortality; Ganglioneuroma - pathology; Ganglioneuroma - therapy; Humans; Infant; Infant, Newborn; Lymphatic Metastasis; Male; Medical sciences; Nervous System Neoplasms - mortality; Nervous System Neoplasms - pathology; Nervous System Neoplasms - therapy; Neuroblastoma - mortality; Neuroblastoma - pathology; Neuroblastoma - therapy; Neurology; Prognosis; Tumors of the nervous system. Phacomatoses; Vitamin B 12 - therapeutic use
• ISSN: 0008-543X; 1097-0142
• DOI: 10.1002/1097-0142(19840515)53:10<2079::AID-CNCR2820531013>3.0.CO;2-E

Between 1949 and 1978, 119 children with the diagnosis of neuroblastoma or ganglioneuroblastoma were treated at the Washington University Medical Center. Of these, 50 (41%) were alive and disease‐free 3 or more years after diagnosis. Important prognostic variables included stage of tumor (Evans staging), histology, age at diagnosis, and site of primary tumor. A stepwise logistic regression analysis of these data has shown that, in order of significance, stage, histology and age at diagnosis are independent prognostic variables. Sex of the patient and nodal status at diagnosis (where known) were not significant prognostic variables. No effects of individual treatment modalities could be detected. This study confirms the overwhelming influence of factors unrelated to treatment in determining the prognosis of neuroblastoma.