Abstract
Central nervous system (CNS) tumors are the most common solid tumors of childhood and are second only to leukemia and lymphoma in overall incidence of neoplasia in this age group. Reflecting the cytologic complexity of the CNS, a bewildering variety of tumors are encountered in the brain and spinal cord. Similarly, outcomes range from curable (cerebellar astrocytoma) to those with a uniformly dismal prognosis (diffuse pontine glioma). In the past 20 years, mortality from leukemia has declined faster than from CNS tumors. Consequently, deaths from CNS tumors (0.8 per 100,000 in 1995) now exceed those from acute lymphoblastic leukemia (0.4 per 100,000 in 1995; Bleyer 1999). For these reasons, management of CNS tumors is likely to remain a challenge for the near future.
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Gupta, N., Haas-Kogan, D., Banerjee, A. (2004). Introduction. In: Gupta, N., Banerjee, A., Haas-Kogan, D. (eds) Pediatric CNS Tumors. Pediatric Oncology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-09227-9_1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-09227-9_1
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
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