Clinico-pathological spectrum of Childhood Central Nervous System Tumors in Iraq: A Single-Institutional Study

Abstract

Objectives: The present retrospective study analyzed the spectrum of pediatric CNS tumors in a single tertiary hospital in Iraq.
 Methods: Data regarding frequencies of various primary CNS tumors (diagnosed according to the World Health Organization (WHO) classification), in pediatric patients (<18 yrs. of age), were collected from a single tertiary care hospital in Iraq for a period 2014-2017.
 Results: fifty-four children were diagnosed with primary CNS tumors. The most common primary pediatric CNS tumors were medulloblastoma (37%), followed by low grade gliomas (29.6%), high grade gliomas (0.011% ), CNS germinoma (0.09%), supratentorial primitive neuro-ectodermal tumors and ependymomas (0.037% for each). Rare tumors encountered were oligodendrogliomas, choroid plexus carcinoma, and pineoblastoma (0.18% for each). The most common low grade gliomas tumor was pilocytic astrocytoma.
 Conclusions: This is the first study reporting the spectrum of CNS tumors in children in Iraq. Except for a higher frequency of CNS germinoma, the profile of other pediatric CNS tumors in Iraq is relatively similar to that reported in other countries.