History of pediatric hematology and oncology in Finland: a brief review.

The history of Finnish pediatric hematology started in the late 1940s, but this field of pediatrics was not officially acknowledged before 1979. The Children's Hospital, University of Helsinki started hematological services in 1950 but at that time there was no position for a specialist--it was a "spare time" work until 1980 when a hematology/oncology ward was established led by a full time specialist. Since the late 1950s the pediatric department of the Aurora Hospital in Helsinki has made an important contribution to the development of Finnish pediatric hematology.

Bone marrow dysfunctions preceding acute leukemia in children: a clinical study.

This is a review of preleukaemic states in children. In a prospective series of 109 children with AML the overt disease was preceded by MDS in 22 cases. Ten of these patients had Down's syndrome.

Reproduction following treatment for childhood leukemia: a population-based prospective cohort study of fertility and offspring.

Of all children diagnosed with leukemia in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden, 981 had discontinued therapy before 1985 and had been followed up annually after cessation of therapy. Progeny was registered and fertility evaluated among survivors who passed age 18 years without a relapse (n = 299). By April 1989, 48 offspring were registered, one of whom had congenital anomalies.