European Journal of Molecular & Clinical Medicine

Abstract

The rise in paediatric brain tumours has become an important cause of cancer related deaths in children, accounting for 20% of all childhood cancers under the age of 14 years.
Objective: To study spectrum of paediatric neural tumours, their prevalence and histomorphological features in detail and corelate them with age and sex of the patient.
Materials and methods: Data regarding age, gender, and histopathology of children (0-14 years) with neural tumours operated over a period of 2 years (June 2019 to June 2022) were collected retrospectively from the archives of Department of pathology of a tertiary care centre and were analysed and graded according to WHO grading of CNS tumours fifth edition.
Results: A total of 31 Paediatric neural tumours were studied. They were more common in males as compared to females with male to female ration of 1.2:1. Frequency of tumours was higher in children of age group 6-14 years. Astrocytomas and Schwannomas were the most common histological types followed by Medulloblastoma. Less common entities included Ependymomas, Meningomyelocele, Meningiomas and neurofibroma.
Conclusion: There is a rising incidence of neural tumours among children especially in the 5-14 years age group.  Astrocytomas and Schwannomas were the most encountered histological types in our study. It is important to arrive at a confirmative diagnosis on the basis of histopathology for an effective and early management and better prognosis of the disease.