Appropriateness of admissions of children with cancer to intensive care facilities in a resource-limited setting

Background: The increasing intensity of treatment of paediatric malignancies has led to improved survival rates, but often necessitates intensive supportive care. The decision to admit a child to the paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) is based on the probability of both short-term and long-term survival in the context of severe resource constraints. Resource constraints in South Africa result in limited access of children with cancer to PICU facilities. Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine whether referrals by paediatric oncologists to a PICU in Johannesburg were appropriate by analysing indications for admission, underlying diagnoses, duration and costs of admissions, and overall outcomes. Methods: A retrospective review of consecutive PICU admissions over a 12-year period was performed. Data from all patients with histologically proven malignant conditions were included and analysed using descriptive statistical methods, Kaplan–Meier curves, log-rank analysis and Fisher’s exact test. Results: There were 5704 recorded admissions to PICU in the study period. Of these admissions, 120 (2.1%) were for patients with malignancies. The majority of PICU oncology admissions were for post-operative care, and the median duration of stay was 1 day (interquartile range: 1–3 days). The short-term mortality rate of oncology patients in PICU was 13.3% in comparison with 16.2% in the overall PICU population. The 4-year overall survival rate post PICU discharge was 54%. Conclusion: The documented short-term mortality rate indicates that referrals by paediatric oncologists are consistent with current PICU admission policies. Oncologists should assess the prognosis for survival before requesting admission to PICU, and, resources permitting, these patients should be accepted to PICU

Mapping Pediatric Oncology Clinical Trial Collaborative Groups on the Global Stage

The global pediatric oncology clinical research landscape, particularly in Central and South America, Africa, and Asia, which bear the highest burden of global childhood cancer cases, is less characterized in the literature. Review of how existing pediatric cancer clinical trial groups internationally have been formed and how their research goals have been pursued is critical for building global collaborative research and data-sharing efforts, in line with the WHO Global Initiative for Childhood Cancer. METHODS: A narrative literature review of collaborative groups performing pediatric cancer clinical research in each continent was conducted. An inventory of research groups was assembled and reviewed by current pediatric cancer regional and continental leaders. Each group was narratively described with identification of common structural and research themes among consortia. RESULTS: There is wide variability in the structure, history, and goals of pediatric cancer clinical trial collaborative groups internationally. Several continental regions have longstanding endogenously-formed clinical trial groups that have developed and published numerous adapted treatment regimens to improve outcomes, whereas other regions have consortia focused on developing foundational database registry infrastructure supported by large multinational organizations or twinning relationships. CONCLUSION: There cannot be a one-size-fits-all approach to increasing collaboration between international pediatric cancer clinical trial groups, as this requires a nuanced understanding of local stakeholders and resources necessary to form partnerships. Needs assessments, performed either by local consortia or in conjunction with international partners, have generated productive clinical trial infrastructure. To achieve the goals of the Global Initiative for Childhood Cancer, global partnerships must be sufficiently granular to account for the distinct needs of each collaborating group and should incorporate grassroots approaches, robust twinning relationships, and implementation science

Extracranial germ cell tumours : mature and immature (1990–2015). First report by the South African Association of Paediatric Haematology Oncology (SAAPHO)

DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT : Data restricted due to ethical considerations, but reasonable requests will be considered by the corresponding author and only with the express consent of the South African Association of Paediatric Haematology Oncology (SAAPHO).BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES : Outcomes of rare paediatric teratomas have not previously been reported nor treatment regimens standardised in low- and middle-income settings. We sought to evaluate treatment outcomes of children and adolescents with histologically confirmed extracranial germ cell tumours, both mature teratomas (MT) and immature teratomas (IT) in preparation for the development of the South African national treatment guideline. METHODS : Retrospective data by folder review were collated from nine South African paediatric oncology units. Kaplan–Meier analysis with Cox regression was performed to determine 5-year overall survival (OS) and prognostic factors. RESULTS : From January 1990 to December 2015, 60 patients were diagnosed with MTs; 14 males (median age 2 months; interquartile range [IQR]: 0–8.75 months) and 46 females (median age 9 months; IQR: 0–88.5 months). Forty patients were diagnosed with ITs; 10 males (median age less than 1 month; IQR: 0–1.75 months) and 30 females (median age 4.5 months; IQR: 1–162 months). There were high rates of upfront surgical resections in patients with MTs (58/60; 96.6%) and ITs (36/40; 90%), and similarly satisfactory rates of complete resection in patients with both MTs (55/60; 91.7%) and ITs (32/40; 80%). The 5-year OS for the whole group was 85.4%, significantly influenced by stage: Stage I (96.9%), Stage II (100%), Stage III (38.9%) (p < .001 [MT]; p = .013 [IT]). The event-free survival (EFS) ratio for the whole cohort was 78.7%. CONCLUSIONS : Five-year OS for those with low-stage disease was excellent, but was poorer for patients with advanced disease. The implementation of a national treatment guideline will facilitate the standardising of surgical approaches, indications for chemotherapy and specifications for follow-up to improve survival and to collect more robust late effects data.The National Research foundation; Harry Crossley Foundation and Professor Bongani Mayosi Netcare Clinical Scholarship.https://wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/pbchj2024Paediatrics and Child HealthSDG-03:Good heatlh and well-bein

Global Retinoblastoma Presentation and Analysis by National Income Level.

Importance: Early diagnosis of retinoblastoma, the most common intraocular cancer, can save both a child's life and vision. However, anecdotal evidence suggests that many children across the world are diagnosed late. To our knowledge, the clinical presentation of retinoblastoma has never been assessed on a global scale. Objectives: To report the retinoblastoma stage at diagnosis in patients across the world during a single year, to investigate associations between clinical variables and national income level, and to investigate risk factors for advanced disease at diagnosis. Design, Setting, and Participants: A total of 278 retinoblastoma treatment centers were recruited from June 2017 through December 2018 to participate in a cross-sectional analysis of treatment-naive patients with retinoblastoma who were diagnosed in 2017. Main Outcomes and Measures: Age at presentation, proportion of familial history of retinoblastoma, and tumor stage and metastasis. Results: The cohort included 4351 new patients from 153 countries; the median age at diagnosis was 30.5 (interquartile range, 18.3-45.9) months, and 1976 patients (45.4%) were female. Most patients (n = 3685 [84.7%]) were from low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Globally, the most common indication for referral was leukocoria (n = 2638 [62.8%]), followed by strabismus (n = 429 [10.2%]) and proptosis (n = 309 [7.4%]). Patients from high-income countries (HICs) were diagnosed at a median age of 14.1 months, with 656 of 666 (98.5%) patients having intraocular retinoblastoma and 2 (0.3%) having metastasis. Patients from low-income countries were diagnosed at a median age of 30.5 months, with 256 of 521 (49.1%) having extraocular retinoblastoma and 94 of 498 (18.9%) having metastasis. Lower national income level was associated with older presentation age, higher proportion of locally advanced disease and distant metastasis, and smaller proportion of familial history of retinoblastoma. Advanced disease at diagnosis was more common in LMICs even after adjusting for age (odds ratio for low-income countries vs upper-middle-income countries and HICs, 17.92 [95% CI, 12.94-24.80], and for lower-middle-income countries vs upper-middle-income countries and HICs, 5.74 [95% CI, 4.30-7.68]). Conclusions and Relevance: This study is estimated to have included more than half of all new retinoblastoma cases worldwide in 2017. Children from LMICs, where the main global retinoblastoma burden lies, presented at an older age with more advanced disease and demonstrated a smaller proportion of familial history of retinoblastoma, likely because many do not reach a childbearing age. Given that retinoblastoma is curable, these data are concerning and mandate intervention at national and international levels. Further studies are needed to investigate factors, other than age at presentation, that may be associated with advanced disease in LMICs

Travel burden and clinical presentation of retinoblastoma: analysis of 1024 patients from 43 African countries and 518 patients from 40 European countries

BACKGROUND: The travel distance from home to a treatment centre, which may impact the stage at diagnosis, has not been investigated for retinoblastoma, the most common childhood eye cancer. We aimed to investigate the travel burden and its impact on clinical presentation in a large sample of patients with retinoblastoma from Africa and Europe. METHODS: A cross-sectional analysis including 518 treatment-naïve patients with retinoblastoma residing in 40 European countries and 1024 treatment-naïve patients with retinoblastoma residing in 43 African countries. RESULTS: Capture rate was 42.2% of expected patients from Africa and 108.8% from Europe. African patients were older (95% CI -12.4 to -5.4, p<0.001), had fewer cases of familial retinoblastoma (95% CI 2.0 to 5.3, p<0.001) and presented with more advanced disease (95% CI 6.0 to 9.8, p<0.001); 43.4% and 15.4% of Africans had extraocular retinoblastoma and distant metastasis at the time of diagnosis, respectively, compared to 2.9% and 1.0% of the Europeans. To reach a retinoblastoma centre, European patients travelled 421.8 km compared to Africans who travelled 185.7 km (p<0.001). On regression analysis, lower-national income level, African residence and older age (p<0.001), but not travel distance (p=0.19), were risk factors for advanced disease. CONCLUSIONS: Fewer than half the expected number of patients with retinoblastoma presented to African referral centres in 2017, suggesting poor awareness or other barriers to access. Despite the relatively shorter distance travelled by African patients, they presented with later-stage disease. Health education about retinoblastoma is needed for carers and health workers in Africa in order to increase capture rate and promote early referral

The global retinoblastoma outcome study : a prospective, cluster-based analysis of 4064 patients from 149 countries

DATA SHARING : The study data will become available online once all analyses are complete.BACKGROUND : Retinoblastoma is the most common intraocular cancer worldwide. There is some evidence to suggest that major differences exist in treatment outcomes for children with retinoblastoma from different regions, but these differences have not been assessed on a global scale. We aimed to report 3-year outcomes for children with retinoblastoma globally and to investigate factors associated with survival. METHODS : We did a prospective cluster-based analysis of treatment-naive patients with retinoblastoma who were diagnosed between Jan 1, 2017, and Dec 31, 2017, then treated and followed up for 3 years. Patients were recruited from 260 specialised treatment centres worldwide. Data were obtained from participating centres on primary and additional treatments, duration of follow-up, metastasis, eye globe salvage, and survival outcome. We analysed time to death and time to enucleation with Cox regression models. FINDINGS : The cohort included 4064 children from 149 countries. The median age at diagnosis was 23·2 months (IQR 11·0–36·5). Extraocular tumour spread (cT4 of the cTNMH classification) at diagnosis was reported in five (0·8%) of 636 children from high-income countries, 55 (5·4%) of 1027 children from upper-middle-income countries, 342 (19·7%) of 1738 children from lower-middle-income countries, and 196 (42·9%) of 457 children from low-income countries. Enucleation surgery was available for all children and intravenous chemotherapy was available for 4014 (98·8%) of 4064 children. The 3-year survival rate was 99·5% (95% CI 98·8–100·0) for children from high-income countries, 91·2% (89·5–93·0) for children from upper-middle-income countries, 80·3% (78·3–82·3) for children from lower-middle-income countries, and 57·3% (52·1-63·0) for children from low-income countries. On analysis, independent factors for worse survival were residence in low-income countries compared to high-income countries (hazard ratio 16·67; 95% CI 4·76–50·00), cT4 advanced tumour compared to cT1 (8·98; 4·44–18·18), and older age at diagnosis in children up to 3 years (1·38 per year; 1·23–1·56). For children aged 3–7 years, the mortality risk decreased slightly (p=0·0104 for the change in slope). INTERPRETATION : This study, estimated to include approximately half of all new retinoblastoma cases worldwide in 2017, shows profound inequity in survival of children depending on the national income level of their country of residence. In high-income countries, death from retinoblastoma is rare, whereas in low-income countries estimated 3-year survival is just over 50%. Although essential treatments are available in nearly all countries, early diagnosis and treatment in low-income countries are key to improving survival outcomes.The Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Trust and the Wellcome Trust.https://www.thelancet.com/journals/langlo/homeam2023Paediatrics and Child Healt

Sedimentary pigment, sterol and stanol data for the Holocene record of Lake Uddelermeer (The Netherlands)

This dataset provides geochemistry data for the Holocene sediment sequence retrieved from Lake Uddelermeer (The Netherlands) in 2012. Concentrations of sedimentary pigments, fossil sterols and stanols as well as elemental (C, N) measurements are presented against both depth (cm) and age (cal yr. BP). A total of 92 samples were analysed for C, N and sedimentary pigment content; a subset of 30 samples was analysed for sterol and stanol compounds. The data provides an insight in the natural variability of the lake ecosystem and has been used to identify the anthropogenic drivers of the change to the turbid conditions that currently characterize this lake. Cores were retrieved from the centre of the lake using a 3-m long handheld piston corer deployed from a floating coring platform during field work in April and May 2012. Samples were obtained from splits of the core and processed in the laboratory of the University of Amsterdam (the Netherlands) using standard protocols, including the use of high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to determine sedimentary pigment concentrations and full scan as well as selective ion monitoring (SIM) gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC–MS) analysis to determine sterol and stanol concentrations. Name of the Campaign: UDD Event Label: UDD-E Method: Uwitec piston corer Latitude: 52.24652778 Longitude: 5.76097222 Elevation: 24m asl Date/Time of event: 2012-05-01T14:00:00 Further information about event: Lake sediment sequence retrieved using a 60 mm piston corer deployed from a floating platform