What Is Cancer?General information regarding the disease Childhood cancer (also known as paediatric cancer) is a malignant disease that affects children, adolescents and young adults. Cancer affects the patient differently, depending on the stage of life. The consequences of the disease on an adult are not the same as the ones experienced by a child. Many of the cancers that may appear in adulthood are caused by organic factors and by exposure to malignant agents such as tobacco, sun, chemicals, etc. On the other hand, most of the causes of childhood cancer are still unknown. The types of cancer that are most likely to appear during adulthood are: lung cancer, colon tumours, breast cancer, prostate and pancreas cancers. For children and adolescents, the most common cancers are: leukaemias, central nervous system tumours, bone cancer, lymphatic system cancer and liver cancer. Each of these have different consequences for the body but they all share the fact that they are caused by the uncontrolled growth of cells, which leads to an uncontrolled development of abnormal cell sizes and shapes in the body. A main difference between childhood and adult cancer is that most adults can be treated locally in their communities, whereas childhood cancer has to be treated in specialized care centres that cannot be found everywhere in the country (in the case of Argentina). And, since not all hospitals are equipped with the necessary technology to treat cancer, in most of the cases patients and their families are obliged to travel to public hospitals or high dependency units located in the main cities or in communities distant from those they live in. Another difference is that childhood cancer is more likely to be cured in comparison to the likelihood of long term survival after adult cancer. This is why it is so important that all children diagnosed with childhood cancer receive the appropriate treatment in time. Cancer Treatment The treatment of cancer in children can include chemotherapy (the use of medical drugs to kill cancer cells), radiation (the use of radiant energy to kill cancer cells), radiation (a stream of high-energy particles or waves that destroy or damage cancer cells) and surgery (to remove cancerous cells or tumors). The type of treatment needed depends on the type and severity of cancer and the child's age.
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