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Table of Contents Overview of Screening
Neuroblastoma Screening
Changes to This Summary (06/10/2003)
Questions or Comments About This Summary
To Learn More
About PDQ
Overview of Screening
What is screening?
Screening for cancer is examination (or testing) of people for early stages in
the development of cancer even though they have no symptoms. Scientists have
studied patterns of cancer in the population to learn which people are more
likely to get certain types of cancer. They have also studied what things
around us and what things we do in our lives may cause cancer. This
information sometimes helps doctors recommend who should be screened for
certain types of cancer, what types of screening tests people should have, and
how often these tests should be done. Not all screening tests are helpful, and
most have risks such as surgical complications from a biopsy or an operation
after an abnormal screening test. For this reason, scientists at the National
Cancer Institute are studying many screening tests to find out how useful they
are and to determine the relative benefits and harms.
If your doctor suggests certain cancer screening tests as part of your health
care plan, this does not mean he or she thinks you have cancer. Screening
tests are done when you have no symptoms. Since decisions about screening can
be difficult, you may want to discuss them with your doctor and ask questions
about the potential benefits and risks of screening tests and whether they have
been proven to decrease the risk of dying from cancer.
If your doctor suspects that you may have cancer, he or she will order certain
tests to see whether you do. These are called diagnostic tests. Some tests
are used for diagnostic purposes, but are not suitable for screening people who
have no symptoms.
Purposes of this summary
The purposes of this summary on neuroblastoma screening are to:
- Give information on neuroblastoma.
- Describe neuroblastoma screening methods and what is known about their
effectiveness.
You can talk to your doctor or health care professional about cancer screening
and whether it would be likely to help you or your child.
 Back to Top Neuroblastoma Screening
Neuroblastoma is a cancer that primarily affects children. It begins in nerve
tissue in the neck, chest, abdomen, or pelvis. It usually originates in the
abdomen in the tissues of the adrenal gland. By the time it is diagnosed, the
cancer often has spread, most commonly to the lymph nodes, liver, lungs, bones,
and/or bone marrow.
Risk of neuroblastoma
Neuroblastoma is the most common type of cancer in infants. The number of new
cases of neuroblastoma is greatest among children under 1 year of age and
decreases rapidly with age. Males are affected slightly more commonly than
females.
Anything that increases a person’s chance of developing a disease is called a
risk factor. The risk factors for neuroblastoma have not yet been established.
Screening tests for neuroblastoma
Urine samples can be tested for the presence of specific chemicals that are
excreted by most patients with neuroblastoma. Most cases of neuroblastoma are
diagnosed before 6 months of age.
It is thought that many neuroblastomas are present and detectable at birth.
Studies have suggested devising a once-in-a-lifetime screening test, such as
those used for screening newborns for noncancerous conditions, such as
phenylketonuria. At this time, however, there is no good scientific evidence
showing that screening for neuroblastoma leads to a decrease in deaths from the
disease.
Back to Top Changes to This Summary (06/10/2003)
The PDQ cancer information summaries are reviewed regularly and updated as
new information becomes available. This section describes the latest
changes made to this summary as of the date above.
Editorial changes were made to this summary.
Back to Top Questions or Comments About This Summary
If you have questions or comments about this summary, please send them to Cancer.gov through the Web site’s Contact Form. We can respond only to email messages written in English.
Back to Top To Learn More
Call For more information, U.S. residents may call the National Cancer Institute's (NCI's) Cancer Information Service toll-free at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237) Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Deaf and hard-of-hearing callers with TTY equipment may call 1-800-332-8615. The call is free and a trained Cancer Information Specialist is available to answer your questions. Web sites and Organizations The NCI's Cancer.gov Web site provides online access to information on cancer, clinical trials, and other Web sites and organizations that offer support and resources for cancer patients and their families. There are also many other places where people can get materials and information about cancer treatment and services. Local hospitals may have information on local and regional agencies that offer information about finances, getting to and from treatment, receiving care at home, and dealing with problems associated with cancer treatment. Publications The NCI has booklets and other materials for patients, health professionals, and the public. These publications discuss types of cancer, methods of cancer treatment, coping with cancer, and clinical trials. Some publications provide information on tests for cancer, cancer causes and prevention, cancer statistics, and NCI research activities. NCI materials on these and other topics may be ordered online or printed directly from the NCI Publications Locator. These materials can also be ordered by telephone from the Cancer Information Service toll-free at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237), TTY at 1-800-332-8615. LiveHelp The NCI's LiveHelp service, a program available on several of the Institute's Web sites, provides Internet users with the ability to chat online with an Information Specialist. The service is available from 9:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. Eastern time, Monday through Friday. Information Specialists can help Internet users find information on NCI Web sites and answer questions about cancer. Write For more information from the NCI, please write to this address: - NCI Public Inquiries Office
- Suite 3036A
- 6116 Executive Boulevard, MSC8322
- Bethesda, MD 20892-8322
Back to Top About PDQ
PDQ is a comprehensive cancer database available on Cancer.gov. PDQ is the National Cancer Institute's (NCI's) comprehensive cancer information database. Most of the information contained in PDQ is available online at Cancer.gov, the NCI's Web site. PDQ is provided as a service of the NCI. The NCI is part of the National Institutes of Health, the federal government's focal point for biomedical research. PDQ contains cancer information summaries. The PDQ database contains summaries of the latest published information on cancer prevention, detection, genetics, treatment, supportive care, and complementary and alternative medicine. Most summaries are available in two versions. The health professional versions provide detailed information written in technical language. The patient versions are written in easy-to-understand, nontechnical language. Both versions provide current and accurate cancer information. The PDQ cancer information summaries are developed by cancer experts and reviewed regularly. Editorial Boards made up of experts in oncology and related specialties are responsible for writing and maintaining the cancer information summaries. The summaries are reviewed regularly and changes are made as new information becomes available. The date on each summary ("Date Last Modified") indicates the time of the most recent change. PDQ also contains information on clinical trials. People who are at high risk for a certain type of cancer may want to take part in a clinical trial. A clinical trial is a study to answer a scientific question, such as whether a method of finding cancer earlier can help people to live longer. Trials are based on past studies and what has been learned in the laboratory. Each trial answers certain scientific questions in order to find new and better ways to help cancer patients and those who are at risk for cancer. During screening clinical trials, information is collected about screening methods, the risks involved, and how well they do or do not work. If a clinical trial shows that a new method is better than one currently being used, the new method may become "standard." Listings of clinical trials are included in PDQ and are available online at Cancer.gov. Descriptions of the trials are available in health professional and patient versions. Many cancer doctors who take part in clinical trials are also listed in PDQ. For more information, call the Cancer Information Service 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237); TTY at 1-800-332-8615.
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