Childhood cancer

Childhood cancer
Other names	Pediatric cancer
A girl trying out hats to wear after chemotherapy against a Wilms' tumor[1]
Specialty	Pediatrics, oncology

Childhood cancer is cancer in a child. About 80% of childhood cancer cases in high-income countries can be successfully treated via modern medical treatments and optimal patient care.^[2][3] However, only about 10% of children diagnosed with cancer reside in high-income countries where the necessary treatments and care is available.^[4][5] Childhood cancer represents only about 1% of all types of cancers diagnosed in children and adults, It is often more complex than adult cancers with unique biological characteristics and research and treatment is yet very challenging and limited.^{[citation needed]} For this reason, childhood cancer is often ignored in control planning, contributing to the burden of missed opportunities for its diagnoses and management in countries that are low- and mid-income.^[6]

In the United States, an arbitrarily adopted standard of the ages used are 0–14 years inclusive, that is, up to 14 years 11.9 months of age.^[7][8] However, the definition of childhood cancer sometimes includes adolescents between 15 and 19 years old.^[8] Pediatric oncology is the branch of medicine concerned with the diagnosis and treatment of cancer in children.