Pediatric Cancer Burden in Different Regions of India: Analysis of Published Data From 33 Population-Based Cancer Registries

Objective To provide the regional pediatric cancer (age-group 0–14 years) burden and pattern in India utilizing published data of population-based cancer registries established under the National Cancer Registry Programme and Tata Memorial Centre, Mumbai. Methods Based on the geographic locations, the population-based cancer registries were categorized into six regions. The age-specific incidence rate was calculated using the number of pediatric cancer cases and population in the respective age-group. Age-standardized incidence rate per million and 95% CI were calculated. Results In India, 2% of all cases were pediatric cancer. The age-standardized incidence rate (95% CI) for boys and girls is 95.1 (94.3–95.9) and 65.5 (64.8–66.2) per million population, respectively. Registries from northern India reported the highest rate; while the lowest rate was in northeastern India. Conclusion There is a need to establish pediatric cancer registries in different regions of India to know the accurate pediatric cancer burden.