Characteristics of cancer patients under the age of 20 at medical centers in Israel and the West Bank: a preliminary study.

This paper describes the demographic experience on 373 young cancer patients (less than 20 years of age) at two oncology centers initiated in Israel by one medical team in 1975-1977. These units are the Assaf Harofeh Medical Center (AHMC), which predominantly serves a Jewish population (103 cases); and the West Bank Cancer Unit (WBCU), which provides similar care services to the Arab population of the West Bank (270 cases). The two centers have the unique feature of serving two populations residing in close relationship but still differing in many cultural and socioeconomic characteristics. The Arab patients at WBCU tended to be younger than the Jewish children at AHMC. The five most common diagnostic sites for both AHMC and WBCU included hematopoietic system, bones and joints, soft tissue, urinary tract, and brain and nervous system, although not in the same order of occurrence. These tumor sites accounted for approximately 80% of the cases at each center. The experience with WBCU patients was also compared with data for all Jews in Israel. This comparison identified for both sexes combined statistically significant differences in relative frequency of tumors of soft tissue, eye and orbit, brain and nervous system, and thyroid gland. If confirmed by additional data, reasons for the suggested excess risks should be pursued through more definitive epidemiological studies.