How is Childhood Cancer Different Than Adult Cancer?

Rally Kid Grant
Neuroblastoma
Solid Tumor Cancer
(2013–2018)

Kids Get Different Cancers Than Adults

Childhood cancers are different from adult cancers and require specialized research and treatments. While adults are more commonly diagnosed with lung, breast, prostate and colon cancer, children are more likely to face blood cancers, brain tumors and other solid tumors. Because pediatric cancers develop differently, kids need treatments designed specifically for children and their growing bodies.

Types of Childhood Cancer

Select a cancer type to read about it.

Blood Cancer

The two main types of childhood blood cancer are leukemia and lymphoma. Leukemia starts in the bone marrow and causes the body to produce too many abnormal white blood cells. The two most common types of leukemia are acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), which is most common in children, and acute myeloid leukemia (AML), which occurs more frequently in adults. Lymphoma affects the immune system and lymphocytes. The two types of lymphoma are Hodgkin lymphoma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma. With lymphoma, abnormal cells do not properly protect the body and can crowd out healthy cells.

Bone Cancer

The two most common types of childhood bone cancer are osteosarcoma and Ewing sarcoma. Osteosarcoma usually develops in the fast-growing ends of the long bones, most often around the knee, thigh or upper arm, and is most common in teens. Ewing sarcoma can start in the bones or in the soft tissue around them, frequently in the hips, ribs, legs or arms. Both are typically treated with a combination of chemotherapy, surgery and, in some cases, radiation.

Brain Cancer

Brain tumors are the most prevalent form of pediatric cancer in kids under the age of 19. Brain cancer can form in any area of the central nervous system, which is composed of the brain and spinal cord. Certain types are more likely to occur in certain parts of the brain. Medulloblastoma is the most common malignant brain tumor, accounting for about 20% of all pediatric brain tumors. Other childhood brain tumors include atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumors (ATRT), primitive neuroectodermal tumors (PNET) and diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG).

Solid Tumor Cancer

A solid tumor is an abnormal mass of tissue that can occur in all different parts of the body including the brain, kidneys, liver and bones. The two major types of solid tumors are sarcomas and carcinomas. Sarcomas are tumors that occur in blood vessels, bones, fat tissue, ligaments, lymph vessels, muscles or tendons. The most common solid tumors in children and teens are rhabdomyosarcoma, neuroblastoma, Wilms tumor, germ cell tumors and retinoblastoma.

Ways Childhood Cancer is Treated

Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy consists of anti-cancer drugs as part of an ongoing regimen designed to cure, control and/or alleviate the symptoms of cancer.
These drugs travel through the bloodstream to reach and kill cancer cells.
Immunotherapy
Immunotherapy uses a child’s own immune system to target and treat cancer.
One example of immunotherapy treatment is CAR T-cell therapy, which takes a patient’s T cells, or cells found in the immune system, and genetically modifies them in the laboratory to attack the cancer cells.
Molecularly Targeted Therapy
Targeted therapy drugs work by blocking the growth and spread of cancer by interfering with specific molecules that are involved in the progression of cancer.
Blocking these molecules can kill cancer cells or can keep cancer cells from growing or spreading.
Proton Radiation
Proton therapy, also called proton beam therapy, is a type of radiation therapy that uses protons, rather than X-rays, to treat cancer.
Compared with X-ray radiation therapy, proton therapy delivers up to 60% less radiation to healthy tissues around the tumor.
Radiation
Radiation therapy is a cancer treatment that uses high doses of radiation to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors.
This treatment can be used on its own or in combination with other therapies.