Prevalence of survivors of childhood cancer based on a population‐based cancer registry in Osaka, Japan

Abstract

Although the survival rate of patients with childhood cancer has greatly improved, long‐term survivors face specific problems such as the late effects of cancer treatment. In this study, we estimated the number of people who had experienced childhood cancer to predict their needs for medical care and social resources. Using data from the population‐based Osaka Cancer Registry, we identified children aged 0–14 years who were diagnosed with cancer between 1975 and 2019. We estimated the prevalence on December 31, 2019, and the 5‐ and 10‐year prevalence (i.e., the number of survivors living up to 5 or 10 years after the diagnosis of cancer) over time. The prevalence proportion was age‐standardized using a direct standardization method. The prevalence estimates for Osaka were applied to the national population to determine the national prevalence in Japan. Among 8186 patients diagnosed with childhood cancer in Osaka, 5252 (987 per million) survived until December 31, 2019. The 5‐year prevalence per million increased from 194 in 1979 to 417 in 2019 (+116%), while the 10‐year prevalence increased from 391 in 1984 to 715 in 2019 (+83%). Based on the long‐term registry data, an estimated 73,182 childhood cancer survivors were living in Japan by the end of 2019. The increasing 5‐year and 10‐year prevalence proportions indicate the continued need for cancer survivorship support for children, adolescents, and young adults. These estimates of the prevalence of childhood cancer survivors, including long‐term survivors, may be useful for policymakers and clinicians to plan and evaluate survivorship care.