ArticlePloS one2014
Pediatric malignancies, treatment outcomes and abandonment of pediatric cancer treatment in Zambia.
Article in PloS one, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 53 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
53 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Barriers to Radiotherapy Access in Sub-Saharan Africa for Patients with Cancer: A Systematic Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2024Pooled it
- Determinants of delayed childhood cancer care in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review.Pediatric blood & cancer · 2023Pooled it
- Pediatric Colorectal Cancer in Africa: A Multicenter Study on Epidemiology, Management, and Outcomes Between 2000 and 2023.JGH open : an open access journal of gastroenterology and hepatology · 2026Article
- The Diagnostic Evolution of Haematological Neoplasms: A Narrative Review of the Road to Two Genetically Focused Classification Systems Through a Resource-Limited Perspective.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- PEDCan: acceptability and feasibility of a mobile application to support primary health-care workers in recognising clinical features of childhood cancer in Uganda.Ecancermedicalscience · 2026Article
- Global Challenges in Paediatric Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia.Acta haematologica · 2026Review
- Patterns and temporal trends in childhood cancer incidence in northern Ghana: evidence from medical records, 2016 to 2023.BMC pediatrics · 2025Article
- Integrated Model of Cancer Control for Early Detection and Treatment in Adolescents and Young Adults Living With HIV: Protocol for a Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial.JMIR research protocols · 2025Article
- Clinical Profile of Pediatric Solid Tumors: Experience From a Tertiary Care Center in Ethiopia.Cancer reports (Hoboken, N.J.) · 2025Article
- Primary Tumors of the Brain and Central Nervous System in Adults and Children in Sub-Saharan Africa: Protocol for a Scoping Review.JMIR research protocols · 2025Article
- The magnitude and associated factors of childhood cancer treatment abandonment at the university of Gondar comprehensive specialized hospital, Ethiopia.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Does distance to the hospital affect the course of treatment and follow-up for children with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia?Journal of cancer research and clinical oncology · 2025Article
- Mapping the cancer research landscape across Zambia: evidence to support national cancer control planning.Ecancermedicalscience · 2025Review
- Article
- Factors influencing parental fatigue in children with retinoblastoma based on the unpleasant symptoms theory.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Treatment abandonment in children with Wilms tumor at a national referral hospital in Uganda.Pediatric surgery international · 2024Article
- A Heart for the Care: Affect, Kin, and Care Work in a Zambian Hospital.Medical anthropology quarterly · 2024Article
- Immunohistochemistry effect on diagnostic reliability for paediatric cancer at Mwanza region, Tanzania: a laboratory descriptive study.Ecancermedicalscience · 2024Article
- Pediatric cancer mortality: Analyzing early deaths and fatalities in a resource-limited tertiary care context.PloS one · 2024Article
- Risk factors associated with abandonment of care in retinoblastoma: analysis of 692 patients from 10 countries.The British journal of ophthalmology · 2023Observational
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
11 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundThere exist significant challenges to the receipt of comprehensive oncologic treatment for children diagnosed with cancer in sub-Saharan Africa. To better define those challenges, we investigated treatment outcomes and risk factors for treatment abandonment in a cohort of children diagnosed with cancer at the University Teaching Hospital (UTH), the site of the only pediatric oncology ward in Zambia.
methodsUsing an established database, a retrospective cohort study was conducted of children aged 0-15 years admitted to the pediatric oncology ward between July 2008 and June 2010 with suspected cancer. Diagnosis, mode of diagnosis, treatment outcome, and risk factors for abandonment of treatment were abstracted from this database and clinical medical records.
resultsAmong 162 children treated at the UTH during the study time period that met inclusion criteria, only 8.0% completed a treatment regimen with most of the patients dying during treatment or abandoning care. In multivariable analysis, shorter distance from home to the UTH was associated with a lower risk of treatment abandonment (Adjusted Odds Ratio [aOR] = 0.48 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.23-0.97). Conversely maternal education less than secondary school was associated with increased risk for abandonment (aOR = 1.65; 95% CI 1.05-2.58).
conclusionsDespite availability of dedicated pediatric oncology treatment, treatment completion rates are poor, due in part to the logistical challenges faced by families, low educational status, and significant distance from the hospital. Alternative treatment delivery strategies are required to bring effective pediatric oncology care to the patients in need, as their ability to come to and remain at a central tertiary care facility for treatment is limited. We suggest that the extensive system now in place in most of sub-Saharan Africa that sustains life-long antiretroviral therapy for children with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection be adapted for pediatric cancer treatment to improve outcome.
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