Secondary malignancies in pediatic HL survivors

In the JCO:

A report from Stanford comes out with long follow up from pediatric HL survivors, treated with lower dose radiation looking at secondary malignancy rates. The twenty year rate of secondary malignancy was 17%, consisting of leukemias and solid tumors including breast, thyroid and sarcoma primaries. Again this underlines the potential for malignancy induction in the pediatric patients.

Link and Abstract

Second Malignant Neoplasms in Survivors of Pediatric Hodgkin's Lymphoma Treated With Low-Dose Radiation and Chemotherapy [Pediatric Oncology]: "Purpose

Survivors of childhood Hodgkin's lymphoma (HL) are at risk for second malignant neoplasms (SMNs). It is theorized that this risk may be attenuated in patients treated with lower doses of radiation. We report the first long-term outcomes of a cohort of pediatric survivors of HL treated with chemotherapy and low-dose radiation.

Patients and Methods

Pediatric patients with HL (n = 112) treated at Stanford from 1970 to 1990 on two combined modality treatment protocols were identified. Treatment included six cycles of chemotherapy with 15 to 25.5 Gy involved-field radiation with optional 10 Gy boosts to bulky sites. Follow-up through September 1, 2007, was obtained from retrospective chart review and patient questionnaires.

Results

One hundred ten children completed HL therapy; median follow-up was 20.6 years. Eighteen patients developed one or more SMNs, including four leukemias, five thyroid carcinomas, six breast carcinomas, and four sarcomas. Cumulative incidence of first SMN was 17% (95% CI, 10.5 to 26.7) at 20 years after HL diagnosis. The standard incidence ratio for any SMN was 22.9 (95% CI, 14.2 to 35) with an absolute excess risk of 93.7 cases per 10,000 person-years. All four secondary leukemias were fatal. For those with second solid tumors, the mean (± SE) 5-year disease-free and overall survival were 76% ± 12% and 85% ± 10% with median follow-up 5 years from SMN diagnosis.

Conclusion

Despite treatment with low-dose radiation, children treated for HL remain at significant risk for SMN. Sarcomas, breast and thyroid carcinomas occurred with similar frequency and latency as found in studies of children with HL who received high-dose radiation.

"