The importance of time

Timely diagnosis and initiation of treatment for childhood cancer can significantly improve survival rates.

Early detection and prompt initiation of treatment are critical for patients of all ages, particularly children with cancer, to achieve better outcomes. This can be achieved through personalized risk assessments, early detection efforts in primary healthcare, timely initiation of treatment using appropriate drugs, and educational campaigns aimed at reducing delays at each stage of cancer care.(Ref)

Childhood cancer compared to adult cancer

Childhood cancer is generally more treatable than adult cancers for several reasons. Unlike adult cancers, childhood cancers are not typically caused by lifestyle factors such as diet or smoking. The exact causes of most childhood cancers remain unknown. Some childhood cancers are linked to inherited gene mutations passed from parents to children, while others may result from gene changes that occur during fetal development. However, not all children with these mutations develop cancer.

• Children with cancer often require different treatment approaches compared to adults.
• Their cancer cells tend to respond better to treatments.
• They can often tolerate higher doses of chemotherapy drugs over shorter periods before experiencing side effects.
• They generally recover more quickly from treatments compared to adults.(Ref)

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most commonly diagnosed type of childhood cancer.

Over the last 60 years, ALL treatment has dramatically improved, as shown in the figure below, with a cure rate of over 90% in developed countries. This is thanks to risk-directed and effective systemic chemotherapy.

However, in low- and middle-income countries, cure rates are significantly lower, ranging from 40% to 70%, due to limited resources for patients and healthcare professionals (ref).

Incidence rate of childhood cancer in Iran

Research indicates that the incidence rate of childhood cancer in Iran has a steady increasing trend for both female and male patients in most provinces (ref). Since the re-imposition of unilateral sanctions in 2018, access to crucial medicines in Iran has been impacted.

While medical products are theoretically exempt from sanctions, uncertainties surrounding humanitarian exceptions and sanctions on international financial transfers have resulted in pharmaceutical shortages and increased medicine prices. This, in turn, affects the severity of morbidity and survival rates (ref).

Here,  you can see the geographic distribution of estimated childhood cancer incidence (per 10000 populations) in Iran (ref)