- Childhood cancer is one of the leading causes of mortality in children and adolescents.
- In this sector of the population the most common tumor is acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
- Hematopoietic cell or bone marrow transplantation is a curative form of treatment for patients with leukemia, lymphoma, or multiple myeloma.
Childhood cancer remains one of the leading causes of mortality in minors. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) approximately 300,000 cases are diagnosed each year. The figure is quite high but the worst thing is that it is a disease that cannot be prevented in this group of patients.
The Dr. Yadira Melchor Vidala pediatric oncologist at the ABC Medical Center, reports that the leukemia It is the most common cancer in Mexican children and adolescents. In fact, it already represents a public health problem because it is one of the main causes of mortality from disease in this age group. It also has a great physical, social, psychological and economic impact, both for the patient and for their families.
Symptoms for timely detection
He adds that if he child cancer detected in time is curable in more than 80%. Therefore, the main aspects that must be taken into account in children are: persistent bone pain, fever without apparent cause and that lasts more than seven days.
Also presence of bruises or bleeding unrelated to blows or falls, increased volume of the neck or any part of the body, loss of learned skills, weight loss, continuous headache that does not stop with analgesics, stomach growth; an organ may be growing that may be related to the presence of a tumor.
It is important that parents are attentive to these signs and symptoms to go to the pediatrician and that the correct approach can be made. If there is information that could lead to a diagnosis of childhood cancer, a pediatric oncologist should be seen in a timely manner. Today, 70% of patients arrive in advanced stages.
As for leukemia, the expert mentions that it represents 52% of all types of cancer in children. Your treatment is with chemotherapy but it will depend on whether there are malignant cells at the level of the central nervous system to include radiotherapy. It is a multidisciplinary management that involves different doctors and techniques.
“For patients who cannot be cured with conventional treatment (chemotherapy and radiotherapy), there is a bone marrow transplant. It is a highly specialized treatment that requires a donor, who can be a relative or an unrelated person”.
The Hematopoietic Cell and Bone Marrow Transplant Unit of Hospital ABC He has been performing cutting-edge treatments for 16 years with a highly trained medical team that specializes in pediatric patients, whose cases are evaluated by a multidisciplinary committee to determine eligibility and optimal treatment.
“Approximately every year we perform about 40 transplants with different diagnoses, the ABC Medical Center has made an effort to carry out a program by the Social Responsibility Clinic for the care of vulnerable patients with leukemia, a solid tumor or who require a transplant of bone marrow”.
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Childhood cancer: Main symptoms that patients develop
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General practitioners cannot diagnose childhood cancer but can identify the first signs: UNAM