Most Common Intra-Abdominal Solid Tumor in Children
Neuroblastoma is the most common intra-abdominal solid tumor in children. 1
Epidemiology and Characteristics
Neuroblastoma is recognized as the most common extracranial solid tumor diagnosed in children and specifically the most common intra-abdominal solid tumor in children according to the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) Guidelines and the American Cancer Society 1
Neuroblastoma accounts for approximately 11% of all pediatric cancers and 15% of all pediatric cancer deaths 2
The peak age of onset for neuroblastoma is around 22 months, with most cases presenting in children under 5 years of age 2, 3
Comparative Prevalence
In a 5-year study of intra-abdominal tumors in children under 16 years, neuroblastoma was found to be the most common, constituting 29.6% of all cases, followed by Wilms' tumor (nephroblastoma) at 25.1% 3
Other common intra-abdominal tumors in children include:
Clinical Presentation
The most common presentation of neuroblastoma is an abdominal mass, though patients may present with various clinical manifestations due to metastatic disease or paraneoplastic syndromes 4
Common symptoms of abdominal neuroblastoma include:
Disease Distribution and Prognosis
Approximately 70% of neuroblastomas occur in the abdomen, and these carry a worse prognosis compared to neuroblastomas at other sites 6
At the time of diagnosis, about 70% of patients already have metastatic disease 6
With current treatment protocols including high-dose chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery, approximately 80% of high-risk patients achieve initial remission, though the majority subsequently relapse 2
Long-term survival rates (>5 years) for high-risk neuroblastoma remain below 50% 2