Excess of congenital abnormalities in French-Canadian children with neuroblastoma: A case series study from Montreal

Neuroblastoma is one of the most common cancers of childhood. Some studies have shown an excess of congenital abnormalities in children who have been diagnosed with neuroblastoma. In this study we examined the medical records of all children with neuroblastoma seen at St. Justine Children's Hospital between the years 1977 and 1993. A total of 141 children (131 of French-Canadian ancestry) were included in this study. Twelve children (8.5%) had 21 defined congenital abnormalities (1,490 per 10,000 children). This compared with a rate of 444.3 children with abnormalities per 10,000 live births (4.44%) for all congenital abnormalities in the British Columbia Health Surveillance Registry, 1979-1988 (relative risk = 1.91, P = 0.03). Six of the 12 children had cardiovascular malformations. These and previous results suggest that there may be a common developmental origin to neuroblastoma and to some congenital malformations. Genes that control development may be worthy of further study in these children. (C) 1997 Wiley-Liss, Inc.