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Bone and soft tissue tumour symposium, 15 and 16-05-2009
Last update on: 10/15/2009
Bone and soft tissue tumour symposium, 15 and 16-05-2009: a country-wide event for patients and their families held in Stuttgart.
Information relating to the topic bone and soft tissue tumours in children and adolescents was provided on the occasion of the country-wide patient symposium organized by our project partner, the German Paediatric Cancer Foundation in Stuttgart in May 2009. More than 150 participants from Germany, Austria and Switzerland were in attendance and used the opportunity for a direct dialogue with physicians and contributors.
Learning from one another
„These kinds of events are very important for both the patients and the physicians“,
the “host”, Professor Stefan Bielack, M.D. summed up the event.
„Patients and their parents have the opportunity of gathering detailed information about medical concerns away from the hospital routine; but physicians can learn a great deal too during these discussions“,
explained Bielack, director of the special paediatric division 5 of the hospital for paediatric and adolescent medicine at the Olga Hospital in Stuttgart.
Read the entire interview
During the evening event the day before, which was hosted by Allianz Deutschland GmbH, the presentation of a paediatric cancer survivor who discussed his very personal experience with the disease was very popular.
University lecturer Dr. Ruth Ladenstein, paediatric oncologist at St. Anna Paediatric Hospital and director of the division Studies & Statistics at St. Anna Children's Cancer Research Institute followed up with a report about the EU project entitled “Overcoming cancer with research”, focusing on the impending ascent to the Großglockner mountain.
The symposium programme contained workshops concerning various types of bone and soft tissue tumours. Affected patients were able to raise their questions with study directors and experts and to get to know one another and exchange their experiences in the small workshop groups, each focusing on one particular type of tumour.
Information about medical advances
Limb-conserving surgeries
For example, the participants learned that the continuing further development of surgical procedures as well as improved diagnostics in connection with the use of chemotherapies and radiation during the past 20 years required significantly fewer amputations for the treatment of bone and soft tissue tumours in children and adolescents.
These days, almost 90 percent of surgeries in young people conducted at the treatment centres do not require the amputation of an arm or leg and the risk of a local relapse is not elevated as a result, explained Per-Ulf Tunn, director of the Department for Tumour Orthopaedics at the Sarcoma Centre in Berlin-Brandenburg.
According to Tunn, amputations were required in almost 90 percent of all young patients with malignant bone tumours as recently as in the 1970s. However, even today, an amputation must not be considered a failure of the treatment strategy, the surgeon or the oncologist; in fact, it may be the only option to conserve the chance of a recovery in connection with certain tumour localisations. An amputation is not necessarily associated with a poorer prognosis or worse quality of life, said Tunn.
Chances and risks of radiation therapy
Associate Prof. Tobias Bölling, study coordinator of the „Registry for the registration of long-term effects following radiation therapy in children and adolescents“ (RiSK) discussed the chances and risks of radiation therapy. Radiation therapy is a “firmly established” procedure for the treatment of soft tissue and Ewing tumours. Prior to surgery, radiation therapy can be used to shrink the tumour and make the surgery easier. After surgery, radiation therapy can be used to “destroy potentially remaining small tumour clusters”, explained Bölling.
State-of-the-art radiation therapy techniques have already made it possible to significantly reduce the radiation exposure of the unaffected tissue and organs surrounding the tumour. Yet, more improvements are required to continue limiting unwanted effects. In addition, it is important to gain detailed knowledge about the actual side effects and long-term effects, e.g. to “establish a personal benefit-risk evaluation for every patient”. Therefore, the support of the RiSK registry by the German Paediatric Cancer Foundation is very important.
Improvements in the follow-up care
Associate Prof. Thorsten Langer reported about improvements in the follow-up care. A research project conducted at the Hospital for children and adolescents in Erlangen under his guidance is evaluating possible long-term effects following chemotherapy in paediatric cancer patients. As Langer explained, the physicians in Erlangen are advising doctors who provide follow-up care as well as affected patients to provide effective assistance with long-term effects.
The so-called Late Effects Surveillance System (LESS) is connecting hospitals and physicians with an own practice throughout Germany, Austria and Switzerland, providing an optimal follow-up care network for paediatric and adolescent cancer patients thanks to this cross-country cooperation. According to the information provided by the physician from Erlangen, long-term development data involving 3,000 cases are currently being analysed in the LESS project for rare or unknown late effects.
Career consultancy, training opportunities, follow-up care projects
Aside from special medical presentations, participants had the opportunity of obtaining comprehensive information about other important topics in moderated round tables, discussions and workshops. Questions relating to career consultancy and training opportunities were on the agenda as were rehabilitation concepts and questions relating to social justice.
The German Paediatric Cancer Foundation provided information about the various choices associated with its Forest Pirate Camp and the “Rainbow warriors” who will be starting their 17th traditional bicycle tour in August to visit cancer-stricken children in hospitals along the route, introduced their activities.
The EU project „Overcoming Cancer with Research“ was represented with an information booth.
This summary was published in the magazine WIR 3/09 of our project partner, the German Childhood Cancer Foundation. PDF-Download in German language.
