Epidemiology and treatment outcome of childhood ependymoma: report from the hong kong pediatric hematology oncology study group

Objective: Ependymoma is the fourth commonest childhood brain tumor, but there was little information on its epidemiology and outcome in Chinese children. We reviewed our data and provide some insight in this aspect. Materials and Methods: Prospective collection of childhood cancer data was performed since early 1990s from the five major public hospitals, which captured almost all children with cancers locally. Standard data accrual was performed by designated data managers. The data was further crosschecked with the Hong Kong Cancer Registry database, which collected all the local pathology reports for cancers. Chemotherapy regimen was baby-POG before 2005 and SIOP-99 after 2004. Results: From January 1995 to December 2006 (12 years), a total of 20 cases of childhood (<18 years) ependymoma were diagnosed. Their median age was 3.4 years (range, 0.5–16.3 years), and male:female ratio was 8:12. Excluding one non-Chinese and one .15 years, the incidence of ependymoma was 1.3/1,000,000 per year for children