The Effect of COVID-19 on Oncology Care for Adolescents and Young Adults in Latin America.

Children with cancer in low- and middle-income countries were disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but little is known about how adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with cancer were affected. Sixty-seven physicians and nonphysician providers were interviewed about their experiences caring for AYAs with cancer in Latin America. Quotes related to the COVID-19 pandemic were identified and grouped into themes. Barriers from the COVID-19 pandemic included limited space, restrictions on travel, reduced funding, limited staff, limited services, and changes to treatment. However, improvements to care that arose from the COVID-19 pandemic included better access to distance learning and telemedicine.

Real-World Outcomes of Adolescents and Young Adults with Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma: A Multicenter Retrospective Cohort Study.

Purpose: Patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) are typically treated with rituximab, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone (R-CHOP). However, a standard of care for managing adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with DLBCL is lacking. We examine treatment approaches and outcomes of this population. Methods: We included 90 AYAs (15-39 years) diagnosed with DLBCL between 2008 and 2018 in three tertiary centers in Peru. Overall response rates (ORR) were available for all patients. Overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) rates were estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method. Results: The median age at diagnosis was 33 years, 57% were males, 57% had good performance status (Lansky/Karnofsky ≥90), and 61% were diagnosed with early-stage disease (Ann Arbor stages I-II). R-CHOP (n = 69, 77%) was the most frequently used first-line regimen, with an ORR of 91%. With a median follow-up of 83 months, the 5-year OS and PFS among all patients were 79% and 67%, respectively. Among the patients who received R-CHOP, the 5-year OS and PFS were 77% and 66%, respectively. Of the 29 (32%) patients with relapsed/refractory (R/R) disease, 83% received second-line treatment and only 14% underwent consolidation therapy with autologous transplantation. The 3-year OS for R/R DLBCL was 36%. Conclusion: Our data show that AYAs with DLBCL who received conventional therapy had comparable outcomes to those observed in studies conducted among the adult population. However, the prognosis for AYAs with R/R disease was dismal, indicating the unmet need for developing and increasing access to novel treatment modalities in AYAs.

Impact of hospital characteristics on implementation of a Pediatric Early Warning System in resource-limited cancer hospitals.

Background: Pediatric Early Warning Systems (PEWS) aid in identification of deterioration in hospitalized children with cancer but are underutilized in resource-limited settings. Proyecto EVAT is a multicenter quality improvement (QI) collaborative in Latin America to implement PEWS. This study investigates the relationship between hospital characteristics and time required for PEWS implementation. Methods: This convergent mixed-methods study included 23 Proyecto EVAT childhood cancer centers; 5 hospitals representing quick and slow implementers were selected for qualitative analysis. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 71 stakeholders involved in PEWS implementation. Interviews were recorded, transcribed and translated to English, then coded using a priori and novel codes. Thematic content analysis explored the impact of hospital characteristics and QI experience on time required for PEWS implementation and was supplemented by quantitative analysis exploring the relationship between hospital characteristics and implementation time. Results: In both quantitative and qualitative analysis, material and human resources to support PEWS significantly impacted time to implementation. Lack of resources produced various obstacles that extended time necessary for centers to achieve successful implementation. Hospital characteristics, such as funding structure and type, influenced PEWS implementation time by determining their resource-availability. Prior hospital or implementation leader experience with QI, however, helped facilitate implementation by assisting implementers predict and overcome resource-related challenges. Conclusions: Hospital characteristics impact time required to implement PEWS in resource-limited childhood cancer centers; however, prior QI experience helps anticipate and adapt to resource challenges and more quickly implement PEWS. QI training should be a component of strategies to scale-up use of evidence-based interventions like PEWS in resource-limited settings.

ONCOPEDS: A mobile application to improve early diagnosis and timely referral in childhood cancer in a low- and middle-income country-A pilot study.

BACKGROUND: Diagnosis delay in children and adolescents with cancer is a public health problem in Peru that leads to high rates of advanced disease and mortality. We aimed to assess the implementation feasibility and potential utility of ONCOpeds®, a mobile application that provides consultations with pediatric oncologists, in reducing the latency to diagnosis (LD) and referral time (RT) among children and adolescents in Peru diagnosed with cancer. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A prospective pilot study was conducted in the region of Callao between November 2017 and April 2018. Primary and secondary care providers were trained on the use of ONCOpeds in five educational sessions. Patients younger than 18 years who resided in Callao and were diagnosed with cancer at four pediatric cancer units in Lima were analyzed by referral type: ONCOpeds facilitated or conventional. RESULTS: ONCOpeds was successfully installed in the smartphones of 78 primary and secondary care providers of Callao. During the study period, 23 new cases of cancer in children and adolescents from the region were diagnosed. Ten patients received ONCOpeds-facilitated referrals and 13 received conventional referrals. The RT decreased among those who received ONCOpeds-facilitated referrals by 66% (P = 0.02); however, the LD did not significantly decrease with the use of ONCOpeds. CONCLUSIONS: The implementation of ONCOpeds was found to be feasible in this pilot study, having a potential utility in improving early diagnosis and referral in children and adolescents newly diagnosed with cancer. Directions for future research include multicenter studies with a larger population to further test the application's effectiveness.

Advancing Parental Age and Risk of Solid Tumors in Children: A Case-Control Study in Peru.

BACKGROUND: The causes of childhood cancer are not well known, but the advanced age of the parents has been suggested as a risk factor for childhood cancer in several observational studies. In this study, we examine a possible link between parental age and childhood solid tumors. METHODS: We conducted a hospital-based case-control study (310 cases and 620 controls, matched by age and gender) at Rebagliati Hospital, Lima, Peru. Odd ratio was used to compare categories of advancing maternal and paternal age with and without adjusting for possible confounding factors were calculated. RESULTS: The risk of childhood retinoblastoma was significantly higher among children of mothers aged> 35 years (adjusted OR 1.21; 95% CI, 1.09-6.08) and fathers aged> 35 years (OR 1.17; 1.01-16.33). A significant trend with increasing mother's age (p = 0.037) and father's age (p = 0.005) was found. There were more risks to development of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (p = 0.047) and gonadal germ cell tumors (p = 0.04) for advanced paternal age. There was a strong protective effect of increasing parity on risk of solid tumors in children (p=0.0015). CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that advanced parental age is associated with the risk for the development of retinoblastoma. Advanced paternal age increases the risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma and gonadal germ cell tumor. The higher the order of birth of the children, the less the chance of developing any neoplasm.

Factores pronósticos y sobrevida en pacientes menores de 18 años con tumores de la familia del sarcoma de Ewing: experiencia de 10 años / Prognostic factors and survival in patients under 18 years of age with Ewing sarcoma family tumors: a 10-year experience

Objetivo: Describir las características clínicas y epidemiológicas, y determinar los factores pronósticos, sobrevida libre de evento (SLE) y sobrevida global (SG) de los pacientes con tumores de la familia del Sarcoma de Ewing (TFSE). Materiales y métodos: Estudio retrospectivo llevado a cabo en pacientes menores de 18 años con TFSE, atendidos en la Unidad de Oncología Pediátrica y del Adolescente del Hospital Edgardo Rebagliati entre 2006 y 2016. El análisis descriptivo se realizó mediante distribución de frecuencias. Para el análisis de SLE y SG se utilizaron las curvas de Kaplan-Meier. Se efectuó un análisis univariado y multivariado según modelo de regresión de Cox para variables demográficas, clínicas y quirúrgicas, y factores pronósticos. La medida de fuerza de asociación se expresó en hazard ratio (HR) e intervalo de confianza al 95% (IC 95%), y se consideró p<0.05 para diferencias significativas. Resultados: Se presentaron 29 casos de TFSE. La mediana de edad fue de 9 años (rango 2-17), el 55% fueron varones. La localización más frecuente fue la pelvis (31%). El 59% presentaron metástasis al diagnóstico. La SLE a 3 años en TFSE localizados fue del 40.4% (±14.4 EE) y con metástasis, 14.6% (±12.2, EE). La SG a 3 años en TFSE localizados fue del 53.9% (±17.8 EE) y en enfermedad metastásica, 15.1 % (±9.7, EE). El tamaño tumoral ≥5cm (HR 14.84, p=0.01) y la presencia de metástasis al debut (HR 3.23, p=0.01) fueron factores pronósticos independientes de peor SG. No hubo diferencia significativa en relación con el pronóstico según el sexo, edad, tipo histológico, compromiso de los bordes quirúrgicos o localización del tumor. Conclusiones: Los TFSE son altamente agresivos. Los factores pronósticos que contribuyen a una menor SLE y SG son la presencia de metástasis al debut de la enfermedad y un tamaño tumoral ≥5cm.

Objective: To describe the clinical and epidemiological characteristics, and to determine prognostic factors, event-free survival (EFS) and overall survival (OS) of patients with Ewing sarcoma family tumors (ESFT). Materials and methods: A retrospective study conducted in patients under 18 years of age with ESFT, treated at the Unit of Pediatric and Adolescent Oncology of the Hospital Edgardo Rebagliati between January 2006 and June 2016. The descriptive analysis was performed by frequency distribution. Kaplan-Meier curves were used for EFS and OS analysis. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed according to the Cox regression model for demographic, clinical and surgical variables, and prognostic factors. The measure of strength of association was expressed in hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (95% CI), and p<0.05 was considered for significant differences. Results: There were 29 cases of ESFT. The median age was 9 years (range 2-17), 55% were males. The most frequent location was the pelvis (31%). Fifty-nine percent (59%) had metastasis at diagnosis. The 3-year EFS in localized ESTF was 40.4% (± 14.4 EE) and with metastasis was 14.6% (± 12.2, EE). The 3-year OS in localized ESTF was 53.9% (± 17.8 EE) and with metastatic disease was 15.1% (± 9.7, EE). The tumor size ≥5cm (HR 14.84, p=0.01) and the presence of metastasis at the onset of the disease (HR 3.23, p=0.01) were independent prognostic factors of worse OS. There was no significant difference in prognosis regarding the gender, age, histological type, involvement of surgical borders or location of the tumor. Conclusions: ESFT are highly aggressive. The prognostic factors that contribute to a lower EFS and OS are the presence of metastasis at the onset of the disease and a tumor size ≥5cm.