Survival of Patients With Neuroblastoma After Assignment to Reduced Therapy Because of the 12- to 18-Month Change in Age Cutoff in Children’s Oncology Group Risk Stratification

Bender HG, Irwin MS, Hogarty MD, Castleberry R, Maris JM, Kao PC, Zhang FF, Naranjo A, Cohn SL, London WB. Survival of Patients With Neuroblastoma After Assignment to Reduced Therapy Because of the 12- to 18-Month Change in Age Cutoff in Children’s Oncology Group Risk Stratification. J Clin Oncol. 2023 Jun 10;41(17):3149-3159. doi: 10.1200/JCO.22.01946. Epub 2023 Apr 25. PubMed PMID: 37098238; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC10256433.

In 2006, Children’s Oncology Group (COG) reclassified subgroups of toddlers diagnosed with neuroblastoma from high-risk to intermediate-risk, when the age cutoff for high-risk assignment was raised from 365 days (12 months) to 547 days (18 months). The primary aim of this retrospective study was to determine if excellent outcome was maintained after assigned reduction of therapy. Children <3 years old at diagnosis, enrolled on a COG biology study from 1990 to 2018, were eligible (n = 9,189). Assigned therapy was reduced for two cohorts of interest on the basis of the age cutoff change: 365-546 days old with International Neuroblastoma Staging System (INSS) stage 4, MYCN not amplified (MYCN-NA), favorable International Neuroblastoma Pathology Classification (INPC), hyperdiploid tumors (12-18mo/Stage4/FavBiology), and 365-546 days old with INSS stage 3, MYCN-NA, and unfavorable INPC tumors (12-18mo/Stage3/MYCN-NA/Unfav). Log-rank tests compared event-free survival (EFS) and overall survival (OS) curves.