An updated assessment of 43,110 patients enrolled in the Childhood Cancer Research Network: A Children's Oncology Group report

Austin L. Brown, Pagna Sok, Michael E. Scheurer, Karen R. Rabin, Erin L. Marcotte, Douglas S. Hawkins, Logan G. Spector, Philip J. Lupo

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

11 Scopus citations

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The Childhood Cancer Research Network (CCRN) was established by the Children's Oncology Group (COG) as a resource for epidemiologic studies of childhood cancer. The objective of this study was to evaluate the representativeness of CCRN and identify factors associated with enrollment.

METHOD: The number of US childhood patients with cancer diagnosed <20 years of age enrolled in CCRN (2008-2015) was compared to expected counts, calculated from Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results incidence rates and US Census population estimates. Observed-to-expected ratios and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated across sex, race, diagnosis age, calendar year, and cancer diagnosis groups. Multivariable linear regression models were generated to evaluate the association between open COG phase 3 therapeutic trials and CCRN enrollment rates.

RESULT: The 43,110 cases enrolled in CCRN represented 36% of the expected childhood cancers diagnosed from 2008 to 2015 (N = 120,118). CCRN enrollment ratios [95% CI] were highest among males (0.38 [95% CI, 0.37-0.38]), non-Hispanics (0.35 [95% CI, 0.35-0.36]), and those diagnosed from 1 to 4 years of age (0.50 [95% CI, 0.50-51]). Enrollment ratios varied by diagnosis group, with leukemia, myeloproliferative diseases, myelodysplastic diseases (0.55 [95% CI, 0.54-0.55]), and renal tumors (0.55 [95% CI, 0.53-0.58]) having the highest enrollment. After adjusting for year of diagnosis and cancer diagnosis, there was a 3.1% [95% CI, 0.6-5.6%] increase in CCRN enrollment during windows of open COG therapeutic trials.

CONCLUSIONS: Despite enrolling only 36% of newly diagnosed cases, CCRN remains a valuable resource for investigators conducting childhood cancer etiology and survivorship research. The results of this study may inform efforts to improve enrollment on current and future COG nontherapeutic registry protocols.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)2760-2767
Number of pages8
JournalCancer
Volume128
Issue number14
DOIs
StatePublished - Jul 15 2022

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This work was supported by St. Baldrick's Foundation and the National Cancer Institute (R01CA266105, U10CA180886, U10CA180899, U10CA098543, and U10CA098413).

Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 American Cancer Society.

Keywords

  • cancer registry
  • childhood cancer
  • clinical trial
  • epidemiology
  • research participation
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Forecasting
  • Incidence
  • Neoplasms/diagnosis
  • Censuses
  • Registries
  • Child

PubMed: MeSH publication types

  • Journal Article
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

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