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Neuroblastoma Treatment
Neuroblastoma is a cancer of certain types of nerve tissue. Neuroblastoma tumors can develop anywhere from the neck to the pelvis, but most often begin in the nerve tissue of the adrenal gland. This gland is located on top of the kidneys.
Neuroblastoma is the most common solid tumor found outside the brain in children. It is usually diagnosed in children under age 5. Neuroblastoma happens slightly more often in males than in females.
Doctors use risk groups to plan the best treatment for a patient with neuroblastoma. Some factors that help determine a patient’s risk group include:
- The age of the patient at the time of diagnosis
- The stage of the disease (where are the tumors located)
- The biology of the tumor
Find out more about neuroblastoma on the Together by St. Jude™ online resource.
Treatment of neuroblastoma
Neuroblastoma treatment depends on the patient’s age, how much the disease has spread, and certain biologic features of the tumor. Treatments can include:
- Observation (no treatment)
- Surgery
- Chemotherapy
- High-dose chemotherapy with stem cell rescue
- Immunotherapy
- Radiation therapy
Neuroblastoma clinical trials
St. Jude offers clinical trials and research studies for children, teens, and young adults for neuroblastoma. Learn more about clinical research at St. Jude.
Open clinical trials
Recruiting
Study goal:
The main goal of this study is to test new experimental drugs in hopes of finding a treatment that may work against tumors that have come back or that have not responded to standard therapy in children, adolescents and young adults.
Age:
12 months to 30 years old
Recruiting
Study goal:
The main purpose of 3CAR is to find out if this type of immunotherapy is safe for pediatric patients with solid tumors. We also want to learn if it is effective in fighting solid tumors.
Age:
Up to 21 years old
Recruiting
Study goal:
The main purpose of this study is to find out the good and bad effects of eflornithine combined with irinotecan, temozolomide, and dinutuximab in children and young adults with relapsed or refractory neuroblastoma.
Age:
At least 1 year old
Recruiting
Study goal:
The main goal of this study is to test the safety of 18F-DA in children with neuroblastoma or pheochromocytoma.
Age:
At least 1 year old
Recruiting
Study goal:
The main purpose of this study is to find out how well the medicine tegavivint works to help children, teens, and young adults with certain recurrent or refractory solid tumors.
Age:
12 months to 30 years
Recruiting
Study goal:
The main goal of this research study is to help us learn how to better treat pain and symptoms in children going through chemotherapy cancer treatment.
Age:
8 to 18 years old
St. Jude provides the highest quality of care for patients with neuroblastoma:
- Our researchers found the first gene mutation related to a chronic and often fatal form of neuroblastoma that typically strikes teens and young adults. This finding provided the first clue about the genetic basis of the link between treatment outcome and age at diagnosis.
- St. Jude is making an anti-neuroblastoma antibody. This antibody may give us another tool we can use to destroy any remaining microscopic disease.
- St. Jude has a study that combines the antibody GD2 with chemotherapy. This combination may increase the survival rate for children with neuroblastoma.
- We are using new imaging techniques to see if the neuroblastoma tumor has spread or responded to therapy.
- St. Jude scientists are also researching new ways to remove tumor cells from bone marrow. We do so by using drug combinations or lab methods to filter out the tumor cells.
More reasons to choose St. Jude for care include:
We are consistently ranked among the best childhood cancer centers in the nation by US News & World Report.
At St. Jude, we have created an environment where children can be children and families can be together.
We lead more clinical trials for childhood cancer than any other hospital in the U.S.
St. Jude is the only National Cancer Institute–designated Comprehensive Cancer Center just for children. A Comprehensive Cancer Center meets rigorous standards for research that develops new and better approaches to prevent, diagnose, and treat cancer.
The nurse-to-patient ratio at St. Jude is about 1:3 in hematology and oncology and 1:1 in the Intensive Care Unit.
Patients may be able to get expert, compassionate care and treatment closer to their homes through the St. Jude Affiliate Program.
Seeking treatment at St. Jude
Patients accepted to St. Jude must have a disease we treat and must be referred by a physician or other qualified medical professional. We accept most patients based on their ability to enroll in an open clinical trial.
Contact the Physician / Patient Referral Office
Call: 1-888-226-4343 (toll-free) or 901-595-4055 (local) | Fax: 901-595-4011 | Email: referralinfo@stjude.org | 24-hour pager: 1-800-349-4334
The solid tumor coordinator is dedicated to helping you seek treatment or refer a patient.
Solid Tumor Coordinator
- Phone: 901-595-6110
- Fax: 901-595-7362
- Email: joseph.brigance@stjude.org