Incidence trends in pediatric central nervous system tumors in Canada: a 15 years report from Cancer and Young People in Canada (CYP-C) registry

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study is to present a national surveillance report on pediatric central nervous system (CNS) tumors in Canada during the period between 2001 and 2015. METHODS: All pediatric patients with a diagnosis of primary CNS tumors were collected by the Cancer in Young People in Canada (CYP-C) surveillance system that includes every patient less than 15 years of age with a tumor seen in one of the 17 pediatric oncology centres in Canada. This registry included malignant and benign CNS tumors. We calculated the age-adjusted incidence rates (AAIRs) per 100 000 person-years for CNS tumors overall and by age group, major histology subgroups, and geographical distribution over the country. RESULTS: Overall, 3306 patients less than 15 years old had been diagnosed with a CNS tumor in Canada in 2001–2015 with a 1.23:1 male to female ratio. The overall AAIR is 3.80. The three most frequent groups of tumors were low-grade gliomas (36.4%), high-grade gliomas (22.3%), and embryonal tumors (18.7%) with incidence rates of 1.41, 0.86, and 0.72 per 100 000 person-years, respectively. The incidence rate of pediatric CNS tumors is stable during the period 2001–2015 in Canada and no significant differences were seen between malignant and benign tumors over the country. CONCLUSIONS: These data represent all the pediatric patients 0–14 years old with a CNS tumor in the Canadian population. Incidence rates by age group, sex, and subgroups of tumors are similar to those seen in the literature.