Background and objective: Cancer is one of the most primary causes of death for children. The study was to analyze the cancer incidence and mortality of children in urban districts of Guangzhou between 2000 and 2004, to explore the incidence regularity of pediatric cancers and to provide a reference for prevention and treatment of pediatric cancers.
Methods: The data of cancer incidence and mortality of children during 2000-2004 were collected from Guangzhou Population-based Cancer Registry, and were calculated and analyzed.
Results: The cancer incidence of children between 2000 and 2004 in Guangzhou was 17.91 per 100,000 (18.92 per 100,000 in males, 16.70 per 100,000 in females); the cancer mortality was 4.73 per 100,000 (4.65 per 100,000 in males, 4.83 per 100,000 in females). The incidence of lymphoid leukemia ranked first followed by cancer of central nervous system and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Cancer incidence was 77.52 per 100 000 in children of less than one year old, 21.49 per 100,000 in 1-4 years, 9.66 per 100,000 in 5-9 years and 17.11 per 100 000 in 10-14 years, with significant difference among the four groups (Chi(2) = 307.602, P < 0.001).
Conclusion: Lymphoid leukemia, cancer of central nervous system and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma are the most common cancers in children. The children of 0-4 years old are the population with high cancer incidence.