Neuroblastoma

More information at www.cancer.org

Mainly affecting children, neuroblastoma is a relatively rare cancer of the sympathetic nervous system — a nerve network that carries messages from the brain throughout the body. Each year about 600 children in the United States will develop neuroblastoma. Generally developing in young children, it accounts for half of all malignancies in infants. These solid tumors, which take the form of a lump or mass, commonly begin in one of the adrenal glands, though they can also develop in nerve tissues in the neck, chest, abdomen, or pelvis. The adrenal glands, located above the kidneys, are specialized glands that release hormones which maintain blood pressure and respond to stress.

The cause of neuroblastoma is unknown, though most physicians believe that it is an accidental cell growth that occurs during normal development of the adrenal glands. Increased awareness and improved screening has contributed to a recent increase in the detection and incidence of neuroblastoma.