Defining the cancers suffered by cluster children

Types of childhood cancer diagnosed in the cluster area:

• Optic Glioma: A tumor that affects the optic nerve or optic chiasm, where the optic nerves cross each other. Optic gliomas are rare and the cause is unknown. Most are slow-growing and benign and occur in children usually before age 20. Treatment options include chemotherapy and radiation.

• Medulloblastoma: The most common childhood brain cancer. Medulloblastomas are malignant tumors of the central nervous system arising in the cerebellum. Most occur in children before age 10. They are treated with a combination of surgery, chemotherapy and radiation.

• Melanoma: The most dangerous type of skin cancer. Treatment requires the removal of the cancerous skin cells. Only the most shallow melanomas can be cured by surgery alone. Radiation, chemotherapy or immunotherapy are typically recommended.

• Medulloepithelioma: A rare and highly malignant tumor, usually in the brain or eye. Treatment options include surgery, chemotherapy and radiation.

• Rhabdomyosarcoma: A malignant soft tissue tumor found most often in children. The tumors are rare, but usually occur on the head and neck, the urogenital tract or the arms or legs. The vast majority of children diagnosed do not have any known risk factors. Treatment options include surgery, chemotherapy and radiation.

• Hodgkin’s Lymphoma: A cancer of the lymph tissues found in the lymph nodes, spleen, liver and bone marrow. It spreads easily to other tissues in the body. The cause is unknown. Most children and adolescents with newly diagnosed Hodgkin's lymphoma can be cured.

• Acute Myeloid Leukemia: A fast-developing type of cancer that starts inside bone marrow. There are many subtypes. It is the most common type of leukemia among adults, but is rare in people younger than 40. Chemotherapy is the treatment of choice.

• Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia: A fast-developing cancer in which the body produces a large number of immature white blood cells. It is the most common type of leukemia in children, with most cases in children ages 3 to 7. In most cases there is no obvious cause. Treatment options include chemotherapy, radiation and bone marrow or cord blood transplants.

• T-Cell Lymphoma: A cancer of part of the immune system called the lymphatic system. White blood cells called T-cells develop abnormally and multiply. In most cases the cause is unknown. Treatment depends on the stage of the disease, and usually involves radiation, chemotherapy or both.

• Osteosarcoma: A rare type of cancer that develops in growing bones, usually in people ages 10 to 25. Osteosarcoma most frequently starts around the knee joint, at the lower end of the femur or the upper end of the tibia. Surgery is often the main treatment for bone cancer.

• Ewing’s sarcoma: A type of bone cancer that begins in the nerve tissue in the bone marrow of young people, often after treatment of another condition with radiation or chemotherapy.

Sources: U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, WebMD