Selected aspects of the epidemiology of tumors and tumor-like diseases of the spine and spinal cord in children: A 19-year regional cohort study in the Leningrad region

Background . Statistical analysis of spinal tumors in children is difficult because of its rarity and different morphology. Benign tumor and tumor-like processes are not included in modern oncology literature even though intracanal tumors have the most severe prognosis and influence on a patient’s quality of life. Aim . To evaluate the incidence, epidemiological structure (anatomical, sex, morphological structure), clinical characteristics, and survival of pediatric patients with tumors and tumor-like diseases of the spine and spinal cord in a single region of Russia. Materials and methods . The data of 110 children with tumors and tumor-like diseases of the spine and spinal cord from the Leningrad region who received surgical treatment in Leningrad regional children's hospitals between 1998 and 2016 were included in the study. The authors evaluated the incidence, mortality, and survival rates adjusted for age, sex, morphology, and primary site of growth. Results . The average annual morbidities of pediatric spinal tumors (including the spine and spinal canal) in the Leningradsaya oblast region from 1998 to 2016 were 1.93 per 100 000 pediatric patients and 0.3 per 100 000 for neuro-epithelial tumors of the spinal cord. The mortality rate was 0.2 per 100 000 pediatric patients. Spinal cord tumors of the cranio-vertebral and cervical zones as intramedullary low-malignant and extramedullary malignant metastatic spinal tumors had a negative effect on survival. Conclusions . The Leningrad regional data were generally comparable with the cancer registry data of other countries. The data suggest that pediatric spinal cord patients should be treated in regional neurosurgical pediatric clinics.