[PEDIATRIC ONCOLOGY, HEMATOLOGY AND BONE MARROW TRANSPLANTATION - PAST PRESENT AND FUTURE FOR PATIENTS].

Abstract

Introduction: The treatment of children with oncological and hematological diseases and bone marrow transplantations is under the same roof in the departments and units in Israel. The dramatic improvement in recent decades is a result of the biological understanding of the diseases, new biological and immunological medications, technological progress, database registration, joining large international groups and clinical trials in medical treatment as well as improvements in radiation therapy, surgery and supportive care. In this booklet, we present review articles on the progress in some of the common diseases in hematology and oncology for children, emphasizing the molecular tests that can be used to determine the diagnosis, introducing precision medicine implementing innovative biological and immunotherapeutic drugs and in order to shed light on the diagnosis of congenital genetic disease exposing cancer development. We also update on the work being conducted in the various departments in these fields. As more than 84% of all children diagnosed with cancer will experience long-term survival or cure, the significant challenges remaining for the treatment teams today include treating the recurrence of disease, as well as reducing the long-term side effects in order to improve the quality of life of the survivors.