90% Childhood Cancer Survival Rate Reached, But Racial Gaps Persist

Childhood cancer survival reached nearly 90% by 2017, climbing from 60% in 1975 according to a registry analysis published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

Researchers examined data from more than 100,000 patients aged zero to 19 years old diagnosed between 1975 and 2022. They utilized the US National Cancer Institute’s Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) 8 and SEER 17 databases to assess survival trends across different sociodemographic groups and cancer types.

Improved outcomes varied significantly depending on race, ethnicity, and the specific type of malignancy.

Non-Hispanic Black patients experienced the lowest five-year overall survival across multiple cancers, a persistent gap that remained even after adjusting for patient age and the decade of diagnosis. During the 2000 to 2017 period, five-year survival combined across all cancer types reached 88% among non-Hispanic white patients, 84.5% among Hispanic patients, 85.6% among patients from other racial and ethnic groups, and 80.8% among non-Hispanic Black patients.

Progress Across Diagnoses

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia, which stands as the most common pediatric cancer, saw five-year survival surge from 43% in 1975 to 95% in 2017. Other malignancies also showed distinct survival milestones, with acute myeloid leukemia and sarcomas reaching approximately 72% and 74% respectively. Investigators emphasized that understanding the underlying drivers of demographic disparities remains essential to achieving equitable medical outcomes for all young patients.

“More accurate diagnostics, risk stratification, clinical trials, molecularly targeted drugs and immunotherapy may have contributed to the progress,” said Lindsay Schwartz, a pediatric oncologist at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, told News-Medical. Schwartz also said that certain patients still require more effective and less toxic treatments.

Lifelong Medical Monitoring

Researchers highlighted that long-term survival demands continued clinical observation well past the five-year milestone. For patients treated for Hodgkin lymphoma during the 1970s and early 1980s, overall survival declined from 87% at five years after diagnosis down to 63% after 30 years. This drop shows that individuals who successfully beat childhood cancers need lifelong medical monitoring.

Databases Used and Survival Rates in the Study

Which databases did scientists analyze for this study?

Researchers drew on the National Cancer Institute’s SEER 8 registry, which included 52,165 patients, and the SEER 17 registry, which included 100,110 patients diagnosed between 1975 and 2022.

What was the five-year survival rate for childhood cancer in 1975?

In 1975, approximately six out of ten patients, or 60%, were alive five years after their initial cancer diagnosis.