Questions and answers

General medical information on cancer in children and young people.

This publication presents, in a form accessible to the general public, the professional opinions of specialists

Consequently, the information provided in this section is educational and informative in nature and not they in no way replace the specialist medical consultations or analyzes necessary to be carried out in each of the specific individual cases.

01. Childhood Cancer

What is cancer?

Common types of cancer in children

Is cancer in children the same as in adults?

Why does cancer occur in children?

02. Establishing the Diagnosis

What is Oncopediatrics?

What should be done when childhood cancer is suspected after a medical check-up?

Who diagnoses childhood cancers?

What are the steps that must be taken when a child’s cancer is suspected?

What are the medical procedures used to establish the diagnosis?

What are laboratory tests?

What are imaging tests?

What are endoscopic examinations?

What is the histopathological examination or the medulogram?

Who decides what investigations are needed to establish the diagnosis?

How are the blood samples collected and how is the treatment administered?

What are the elements of the diagnosis made by the pediatric oncologist?

03. Oncological Treatment

Why should oncological treatment be followed?

How is the oncology treatment plan established?

Why is it important to follow the established oncological treatment plan exactly?

What is the role of the parent in establishing the oncological treatment plan?

Who is part of the healthcare team that will care for your child?

How can you, as a parent, help the healthcare team?

What are clinical trials?

What are the modalities of oncological treatment?

Which of the oncological treatment modalities are painful at the time of administration?

What is surgical treatment?

What can be the side effects of surgery?

What is radiotherapy?

What are the side-effects of radiotherapy?

What is chemotherapy?

What are the side effects of chemotherapy?

What other drugs will be needed for the child’s treatment, apart from cytostatics?

What are the cell stimulating factors and when are they given?

Can vaccines be administered during treatment?

What are blood transfusions?

Who supplies the blood products needed for transfusions?

What is the parent’s role in identifying and testing blood donors?

How and where can possible donors for the child be sought?

What is the procedure for pre-testing and donating, depending on the nature of the collected blood product?

04. Bone Marrow Transplantation

What is a bone marrow transplant?

When is a bone marrow transplant necessary?

What are the types of bone marrow transplant?

Which of the child’s relatives should be tested for bone marrow donation?

What is the procedure for testing the potential bone marrow donor?

What is the donor and patient preparation procedure for bone marrow transplantation?

What are the patient preparation procedures for the bone marrow transplant and what are the risks associated with them?

What can be the effects of complete bone marrow irradiation?

What is the procedure for harvesting bone marrow from a compatible donor?

What are the risks associated with the bone marrow harvesting procedure for the compatible donor?

What is the actual bone marrow transplant procedure?

What is the actual bone marrow transplant procedure?

What is the Graft-versus-Host Disease (GVHD)?

What does the post-transplant treatment of the patient consist of?

05. Palliative Care

What is palliative care?

Where can palliative care be administered? By whom?

How can terminal child pain be treated?

06. Alternative Treatment

What is unconventional treatment?

Can unconventional treatment alone cure cancer?

Under what conditions can complementary treatment be sought in support of oncologic treatment?

What are the principal contraindications regarding non-conventional treatment options?

Which non-conventional treatment has no contraindications, according to the studies carried out so far?

07. Recommendations During Treatment

What is the parent’s role during treatment?

What are the hygiene recommendations during hospitalization?

What are the rules to be followed when the child is at home, during hospital breaks?

When should the pediatric oncologist be contacted while the child is at home?

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