Rosalia Ragusa, Dott Fabio Didonè, Laura Botta, Antonina Torrisi, Maria Alessandra Bellia, Gemma Gatta, BENCHISTA Italy working group
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引用次数: 0
Abstract
Introduction
Pediatric cancers are rare tumors, heterogeneous in location and biologically very different from adult cancers. Documented survival variation across European countries and Italian regions shows that there is still room for further improvement by reducing inequalities. We aim to understand why there are differences in survival. The BENCHISTA-ITA project (National Benchmarking of Childhood Cancer Survival by Stage at diagnosis), that is the Italian twin project of the International BENCHISTA, collects stage at diagnosis of solid pediatric tumors, according to the Toronto Guidelines. We will compare how far the cancer has spread at diagnosis and test if differences in tumor stage explain any survival differences between Italian regions.
Methods
The project study involved the stage distribution and the survival of 9 pediatric solid tumors diagnosed between 2013 and 2017 in Italy. All patients therefore had at least 3 years of follow-up in 2021 for life-stage definition. The study involves the identification of all new diagnoses of cancer, evaluation of the clinical documentation of cases eligible for research, and international classification and coding. Analyses of stage distribution and survival rates for each tumor type will be described.
Results
Data from 35 population-based cancer registries from 18 out of 20 Italian regions were collected covering about 84 percent of the Italian child population. In particular, data on: imaging/examination performed before any treatment; source used for staging; primary treatment defined as given within one year from diagnosis; relapse/ recurrence/ progression; follow up and status of life. The study tested the applicability of the Toronto Guidelines as a tool to obtain population-level comparable stage information for childhood cancers. There were 1,343 cases collected (242 Neuroblastoma, 124 Wilms Tumour, 145 Medulloblastoma, 148 Osteosarcoma, 135 Ewing sarcoma, 115 Rhabdomyososarcoma, 54 Ependymoma, 47 Retinoblastoma, 333 Astrocytoma). Toronto stage could be assigned in more than 90 percent in the majority of tumors. Tumors in which it was more difficult to assign the stage using the Toronto staging guidelines were ependymoma, astrocytoma, and retinoblastoma. It was easier to retrieve data for patients in the 0-14 years of age range than adolescents (14-18 years). Differences in stage distribution and survival differences between regional grouping were presented.
Conclusions
The Italian BENCHISTA project, improving the connection between pediatric cancer registries, aims to improve care of children with cancer across the nation, reducing possible disparities.
The wide adoption of the Toronto Guidelines will facilitate international comparative incidence studies, strengthen the interpretation of survival data, and contribute to more appropriate solutions to improve childhood cancer outcomes.
期刊介绍:
International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care serves as a forum for the wide range of health policy makers and professionals interested in the economic, social, ethical, medical and public health implications of health technology. It covers the development, evaluation, diffusion and use of health technology, as well as its impact on the organization and management of health care systems and public health. In addition to general essays and research reports, regular columns on technology assessment reports and thematic sections are published.