Roganovic J. Genetic predisposition to childhood cancer. World J Clin Pediatr 2024; 13(3): 95010 [PMID: 39350900 DOI: 10.5409/wjcp.v13.i3.95010]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Jelena Roganovic, MD, PhD, Adjunct Professor, Department for Pediatric Oncology and Hematology, Children's Hospital Zagreb, Klaiceva 16, Zagreb 10000, Croatia. jelena.roganovic02@gmail.com
Research Domain of This Article
Oncology
Article-Type of This Article
Editorial
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Clin Pediatr. Sep 9, 2024; 13(3): 95010 Published online Sep 9, 2024. doi: 10.5409/wjcp.v13.i3.95010
Genetic predisposition to childhood cancer
Jelena Roganovic
Jelena Roganovic, Department for Pediatric Oncology and Hematology, Children's Hospital Zagreb, Zagreb 10000, Croatia
Jelena Roganovic, Faculty of Biotechnology and Drug Development, University of Rijeka, Rijeka 51000, Croatia
Author contributions: Roganovic J designed and wrote the manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The author declares no conflicts of interest.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Jelena Roganovic, MD, PhD, Adjunct Professor, Department for Pediatric Oncology and Hematology, Children's Hospital Zagreb, Klaiceva 16, Zagreb 10000, Croatia. jelena.roganovic02@gmail.com
Received: March 30, 2024 Revised: May 7, 2024 Accepted: July 1, 2024 Published online: September 9, 2024 Processing time: 153 Days and 6 Hours
Abstract
The etiology of childhood cancer remains largely unknown. Recent evidence suggests that genetic factors play a substantial role in pediatric tumorigenesis. Unlike adult cancers, pediatric cancers typically have a higher prevalence of germline pathogenic variants in cancer predisposition genes. Inherited cancer predisposition syndromes account for approximately 10% of all childhood cancers. Over the years, the diagnosis of cancer predisposition syndromes was based on clinical suspicion prompting referral to a specialized geneticist. However, advances in molecular technologies have led to a shift toward a “genotype-first” approach. Identification of genetic variants related to cancer predisposition enables tailored treatment, improves clinical outcome, optimizes surveillance, and facilitates genetic counseling of the affected child and the family.
Core Tip: Genetic predisposition to childhood cancer has gained increasing attention in recent years as a result of our growing knowledge and advancements in molecular biology. It is estimated that at least 10% of children with cancer have an underlying genetic susceptibility to cancer. Identifying germline pathogenic variants in cancer predisposition genes can be of great importance, both for research studies and clinical implications, including preventive measures, a tailored treatment approach to minimize toxicities, comorbidity evaluation, surveillance and follow-up strategies, comprehensive genetic testing and counseling, psychological support of affected children and their families, and ethical considerations.
