Average 5-year survival in cancers in children up to 14 years of age increased from 69 to 74%, comparing the periods 2010 to 2013 and 2014 to 2017. The data was made public in within an event organized by the Donate Wings Association, in partnership with the Romanian Society of Pediatric Onco-Hematology (SROHP), on the occasion of the International Day of the Child with Cancer, marked worldwide, on 15 February.

Cancer in children is a rare disease (one case in 10,000 cases of cancer), in our country being diagnosed annually, on average, 422 children and adolescents. According to the study, significant increases in survival, of over 10%, were evident in solid tumors – brain and bone – while, in hematological cancers, the increase is up to 8%. Average survival, for cases diagnosed between 2010 – 2017, is of 72%, compared to the European reference averages (EUROCARE 6), of 81% – the average of the European Union – respectively 71%, the average of Eastern Europe. “The results of the survival study validate the strategic directions of the Donate Wings Association, namely: the development of integrated services, the connection of all specialists in a single care team and the configuration of a proximity network (at the local level), which we believe will bring opportunities survival maxima for all children, no matter where they live. This is the reason why we are building an innovative tool, the Dara platform, a digital space that connects all the services needed by children with cancer”, says Alina Pătrăhău, president of the Association Dăruieste Aripi.

The data analysis indicates a difference in survival between children (0 – 14 years) and adolescents (15 – 19 years), both through a lower average survival of adolescents (67%), for the period 2010 – 2017, and from the perspective of the progress recorded between the periods 2010 – 2013 and 2014 – 2017, from 65% to 68%, being for the first time when we can also evaluate trends in the evolution of survival. Significant differences in survival were observed between rural (67%) and urban (75%), but also depending on the region of residence – 76% in Bucharest – Ilfov, compared to 68% in the North-East and South- East. SROHP President, Prof. Univ. Dr. Anca Coliță, manager of the Fundeni Clinical Institute, states that “The National Registry of Pediatric Onco-Hematology (RNOHP) is a database that includes all new cases of cancer in children and young people (0-19 years) , registered in all centers specializing in pediatric onco-hematology in our country. This is the foundation on which the public health programs dedicated to children with cancer are built, in order to respond as best as possible to the needs of them and their families”.

The survival study – which can be accessed online here – is made based on the data from RNOHP, a project developed by the Romanian Society of Pediatric Onco-Hematology (SROHP), in partnership with the Donate Wings Association. RNOHP includes 5065 cases reported in the period 01.01.2010 – 31.12.2021. According to incidence data from the RNOHP, the most common form of cancer is leukemia/blood cancers (31%), followed by lymphomas (15%) and cancers of the central nervous system (14%). A third of these cases occur before the age of 5.