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What are the types of childhood cancers?
If a child has been recently diagnosed with cancer, please click here.
Leukemia www.leukemia.ca
Leukemia is a cancer of the blood cells. It is the most common childhood cancer, accounting for almost one-third of all childhood cancers.
Types of leukemia include:
Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL):
Commonly referred to as "childhood leukemia", because it is the most common childhood cancer. Almost 75% of children with leukemia have ALL, a cancer of the lymphoid cells in the bone marrow and the lymphoid organs of the body. They are involved in the body's immune system.
Usually occurs between 2 and 8 years old.
Acute Myelogenous Leukemia (AML):
AML (also called acute myeloid leukemia, acute nonlymphatic leukemia or ANLL) is cancer of the myeloid blood cells which are produced in the bone marrow and which help fight bacterial infections.
Usually occurs in people over age 25, but sometimes affects teenagers and children.
Lymphomas
www.leukemia.ca (Leukemia and Lymphoma Society)
Lymphoma is a tumour of the lymphocyte (lymph) tissues (cells of the immune system). Lymphocytes are cells that help to fight off infection. Because lymph tissue is in many parts of the body (lymph nodes, skin, stomach, intestines and other organs), lymphomas can start almost anywhere.
Types of Lymphomas include:
Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma: affects the lymph nodes that are found deep within the body and is the third most common childhood cancer. There are many types of lymphoma, including Burkitt's , non-Burkitt's, and lymphoblastic lymphoma.
Most often in children between 2 and 10. More common in boys than girls.
Hodgkin's disease or Hodgkin's lymphoma: is a cancer that affects the lymph nodes that are closer to the body's surface, such as the neck, armpit and groin area.
Commonly affects children aged 15 and over.
Sarcomas www.curesarcoma.org (sarcoma Foundation of America)
Sarcomas are cancerous tumours involving the bones and soft tissues (muscles, tendons, fat, nerves, blood vessels, fibrous tissues and other tissues that connect, support and surround body parts and organs). Below is a listing of bone and soft tissue sarcomas.
Bone cancer
Osteosarcoma: is the most common type of bone sarcomas in children and the sixth most common malignancy in children. These tumours often start at the end of the bone. (This was the type of cancer that Terry Fox had).
Occurs between the ages of 10 and 25.
Ewing's family of tumours (Ewing's Sarcoma): is a less common primary bone cancer that often appears in the middle of the bone. Common sites include the hipbones, thighs, upper arms and ribs.
Occurs between the ages of 10 and 25.
Chondrosarcoma: is the second most common primary bone cancer and is formed in the cartilage.
Although most common in adults, can occur in children.
Soft Tissue Sarcomas
Rhabdomyosarcoma: is the most common soft tissue sarcoma in children and develops in (voluntary) muscles. It is most often found in the head, neck, kidneys, bladder, arms, and legs.
Occurs in children ages 2 to 6 years old
Liver Cancers
Liver cancer, also called hepatoma, accounts for less than 5% of all childhood cancers. Most common forms of liver cancers in children are:
Hepatoblastoma: are rare and can be inherited.
Most often diagnosed in children under the age of three.
Hepatocellular cancer: has been associated with hepatitis B or C (viral infections of the liver). Children infected with these conditions are more likely to get hepatocellular cancer.
Occurs most often in children under the age of 4 and those between ages 12 and 15.
Other cancers
Brain and spinal cord tumours: are the most common form of solid tumours in children, although spinal cord tumours are less common than brain tumours. There are many types of brain tumour; the most common ones are called gliomas. Most brain cancers of children involve the cerebellum or brain stem. Adults are more likely to develop cancers in different parts of the brain � usually the cerebral hemispheres.
Occurs most often in children from birth to 15 years of age.
www.btfc.org (Brain Tumour Foundation of Canada)
www.sickkids.ca/brainchild - b.r.a.i.n.child – brain tumour research assistance and information network
Wilm's tumour: also called nephroblastoma, is a type of cancer that originates in the kidney. Wilm's tumour is the second most common type of all childhood solid tumours.
Average age of diagnosis is between 2 and 3 years when the disease affects only one kidney, but often diagnosed at a younger age when both kidneys are involved.
Neuroblastoma: is a cancer of the sympathetic nervous system and the most common tumour outside of the brain.
Generally occurs in children under the age of 5.
www.acor.org/nbl/ (The Neuroblastoma Hope Foundation)
Retinoblastoma: is a malignant tumour of the retina (a thin membrane in the back of the eye). It is the most common type of eye cancer found in children. The tumour may be in one eye only or both.
Most common in children younger than 5.
www.eyecancermd.org (Ocular oncology at Bascom Palmer Eye Institute)
Germ Cell Tumours: appear most commonly in the testes, ovaries, at the bottom of the spine (sacrococcygeal) and in the middle of the brain, chest or abdomen.
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