About Cancer

Cancer is the leading cause of death by illness among children. Leukemia, brain tumors, and lymphomas are the most common cancers. Other cancers include Wilm's tumor (kidney cancer), neuroblastoma (nerve tissue cancer), bone tumors, rhabdomyosarcoma(muscle and soft tissue cancer), and retinoblastoma (eye cancer).
 
 

Facts and Figures

• One in 350 children in the United States develops cancer before age 20.
• The median age when children get cancer is six.
• Before 1950, the five-year survival rate was 10 percent. Today, nearly eight out of 10 children diagnosed with cancer can be successfully treated.

Symptoms

Because there are so many types of cancers, the symptoms are varied. Some symptoms to watch for include:

• A change in bowel or bladder habits
• Sores that do not heal
• Unusual bleeding or discharge
• Thickening or a lump in some part of the body
• Indigestion or difficulty swallowing
• Obvious changes in a wart or mole