Childhood Cancer Survivors Remain at Risk
Reported June 03, 2008
(Ivanhoe Newswire) Adults whove survived childhood cancer must remain vigilant to stay healthy in the future.
A new study finds these patients have a higher risk for both cancer and heart disease.
Researchers from Brenner Childrens Hospital at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, N.C., looked at data on nearly 2,000 people who survived Hodgkins Lymphoma as children. All were first diagnosed between 1970 and 1986.
The bottom-line message is that a portion of those who survive Hodgkins Lymphoma continue to have significant health needs beyond their five-year cure mark, said Sharon Castellino, M.D., a pediatric oncologist.
Over the ensuing years, 320 people died and 30 percent had a recurrence of the cancer. Twenty-six percent had a second type of cancer and 19 percent had a heart attack or stroke. Among men, those who received higher doses of chemotherapy drugs that included anthracyclines were more likely to die. Among women, radiation therapy was linked to increased risk of early mortality.
Cardiovascular deaths were increased in men, while cancer was responsible for deaths in both sexes. Breast cancer was the most frequent secondary cancer in women.
The authors believe these findings suggest more needs to be done to catch subsequent cancers earlier in these survivors and to develop specific recommendations aimed at keeping their hearts healthier. They specifically note 30 percent of the survivors in the study had reported smoking at some point in their lives.
While radiation doses have declined in children with the disease since the individuals in this study were treated, researchers also plan to pinpoint the changes that occur with radiation. The goal is to find ways to minimize or stop the damage before it starts.
SOURCE: Presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting, May 31, 2008