The Sunday News
Dr Ntombi Muchuchuti
CASES of childhood cancer have reportedly increased over the years. According to the Zimbabwe National Cancer Registry annual report for 2013, a total of 6 548 new cases were recorded up from 6 107 recorded in 2012. Of the reported cases, childhood cancer account for almost five percent of that figure.
Kidzcan Zimbabwe, a humanitarian private voluntary organisation is directly involved in volunteer work through playing a complementary role to the Government’s efforts on cancer prevention and control programmes in Zimbabwe.
The organisation provides for chemotherapy drugs, blood and blood products, specialised diagnostic imaging, specialised laboratory services, supportive services as well as psychosocial services for children with cancer.
Several types of cancer are virtually unique to children, but the cancers are most often seen in adults. There are various causes of cancer though many causes are still unknown. The genetic basis of childhood cancers. Genetic predisposition may either be inherited or the result of a genetic mutation which occurs when the child is in the womb.
Genetic-environmental interaction: In most children born with a genetic predisposition, whether inherited or acquired, its a further trigger that pushes the cancer to progress to overt disease.
Environmental, chemicals and lifestyle factors: Exposure to aflatoxins, asbestos, coal tar, coke oven emission, indoor emission from the household combustion of coal, secondhand tobacco smoke (environmental tobacco smoke), among others at different stages of child development.
Ionizing radiation: People are exposed to natural sources of ionizing radiation, such as in soil, water, and vegetation, as well as in human-made sources, such as X-rays and medical devices
Infections: Viruses are known to be implicated in some human cancers including: Burkitt lymphoma; Hodgkin lymphoma and nasopharyngeal carcinoma, liver carcinoma (hepatitis B) and Kaposi sarcoma.
Drugs: Some of the drugs used in chemotherapy are known to carry a risk of causing secondary cancer.
Types of cancer that affect children
Osteosarcoma can start in any bone, but most often arises in the long bones of the arms or legs. The causes are unknown, however, there is an increased incidence in children who have a hereditary form of eye cancer, or children who have previously undergone radiotherapy and chemotherapy. The symptoms are bone pain, tenderness, swelling and fracture may occur after a minor injury at the site of the weakened bone.
Brain and spinal tumours arise from different types of cells in the brain and are classified according to the cell type and area of the Central Nervous System (CNS) in which they began.
The symptoms and signs of CNS tumours vary according to the type and site of the tumour. Many symptoms are caused by a rise in pressure in the brain are headaches, nausea and/or vomiting, visual symptoms such as blurred vision and squint, abnormal behaviour, seizures (fits), drowsiness or coma.
Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) is the most common form of childhood leukaemia which is a cancer of the white blood cells. White blood cells help to fight infection. In leukaemia, however, the process gets out of control and the cells continue to divide (overproduction) but do not mature. Symptoms such as bruising and anaemia are caused by the bone marrow’s inability to make enough healthy red blood cells and platelets.
Lymphomas start in the lymphatic system, the network of vessels that runs throughout the body carrying fluid containing white blood and other important immune system cells. Symptoms include a persistent (lasting a few weeks) painless swelling of a single lymph gland, usually in the neck, armpit or groin and cough or breathlessness occurs if the glands in the chest.
Neuroblastoma is a cancer of specialised nerve cells. It can occur anywhere in the body, but it most often occurs in one of the adrenal glands, in the abdomen. The first symptoms of neuroblastoma are generally vague, such as loss of appetite, tiredness and pain in the bones.
Wilms’ tumour develops from the immature cells from which the kidneys develop. Unilateral (once sided) tumours occur equally often in boys and girls, but girls are twice as likely to be diagnosed with bilateral (both sided) tumours. The most common symptom of a renal tumour is a swelling in the abdomen, which is usually painless. Sometimes there may be blood in the child’s urine, or their blood pressure may be raised, a fever, upset stomach, weight loss or lack of appetite.
Retinoblastoma is a type of cancer that affects the light sensitive lining at the back of the eye (called the retina).
Retinoblastoma is caused by a genetic defect inherited from parents and can be either unilateral (one eye, around two thirds of cases), or bilateral (both eyes).
The first sign of retinoblastoma is often a white pupil that does not reflect the light. This is called leucocoria and is sometimes detected in photographs taken using flash photography — the affected eye may look white in the photograph (loss of the red-eye effect). Some children may have a squint or – if the tumour is large – a painful, red eye or poor vision in older children.
Rhabdomyosarcoma can occur in almost any part of the body but is most common in the head and neck. There are two main types of sarcoma, which are, Soft tissue sarcomas which develop in muscle, fat, blood vessels, or in any of the other tissues that support, surround and protect the organs of the body and Bone sarcomas can develop in any of the bones of the skeleton.
The most common sign is a swelling or lump.
Dr Ntombi Muchuchuti (PhD) is the Executive Director of Kidzcan.
