The observation that over 50% of cancer survivors suffered from late effects during the short follow-up period and that a high frequency of endocrine late effects was present indicates the need for early and well-timed intervention of the survivors.

Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES) is a clinico-neuroradiologic disease entity represented by characteristic magnetic resonance image (MRI) findings of subcortical/cortical hyperintensity in T2-weighted sequences, more often observed in parieto-occipital lobes, accompanied by clinical neurologic alterations. PRES is a rare central nervous system complication in childhood hematologic-oncologic patients and shows very different neurologic symptoms between patients, from numbness on extremities to generalized seizure. The etiology of PRES was not well known until these days. In this study, 8 patients with PRES were reviewed, retrospectively. There were 4 patients with acute lymphocytic leukemia, 1 with aplastic anemia, and 3 with solid tumors (1 patient each for neuroblastoma, Ewing sarcoma, and osteosarcoma). Allogeneic stem cell transplantation was performed in 2 patients. Immunosuppressive agents such as tacrolimus and cyclosporine A were used in 3 patients. One neuroblastoma patient was in immediate postoperative status. All patients experienced seizure attacks of different types and showed typical MRI findings. Follow-up MRIs revealed significant improvements. From this review, we might consider chemotherapy and surgery as additive causes for PRES other than immunosuppressive agents. Therefore, careful examination of the patients receiving chemotherapy and surgery was needed to find out this uncommon but good prognostic complication.

Wernicke's encephalopathy is an acute neurolopsychiatric syndrome caused by thiamine deficiency, and classically presents with the triad of opthalmopathy, ataxia and altered mentality. Both prolonged total parenteral nutrition and reduced oral intake can induce Wernicke's encephalopathy during hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). Although early treatment is important for recovery from Wernicke's encephalopathy, the vague symptoms and characteristics hinder early diagnosis. Furthermore, Wernicke's encephalopathy is not infrequent and can develop at any age during HSCT. Herein, we present two young patients developing Wernicke's encephalopathy during HSCT.

Recent development of stratified chemotherapeutic regimens has rapidly improved the survival rate of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) of childhood. Despite these improvements, the outcome for children with recurrent or refractory NHL remains dismal. We explored the use of high-dose chemotherapy followed by autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (HDC/PBSCT) for children with either refractory or recurrent NHL, and we evaluated various factors influencing outcome of HDC/PBSCT. Thirty-three patients underwent HDC/PBSCT in 11 institutes were enrolled. All patients had refractory or recurrent NHL. Sex, stage at diagnosis, histologic subtype (lymphoblastic, Burkitt's, and large-cell lymphoma), LDH level at diagnosis, disease status at transplantation, and preparative regimens for HDC/PBSCT were explored. In regard to the patients, six had Burkitt's lymphoma, 13 had lymphoblastic lymphoma, and 14 had large-cell lymphoma. The 2-year event-free survival (EFS) was 59.1+/-9.3%. The EFS for Burkitt's, lymphoblastic, and large-cell lymphoma was 66.7+/-27.2, 50.5+/-14.8, and 82.1+/-11.7%, respectively. In comparison with lymphoblastic and non-lymphoblastic lymphoma, the relative risk for lymphoblastic lymphoma was higher than the others (P = 0.037). EFS between anaplastic large-cell and diffuse large-cell lymphoma was 100 and 55.6+/-24.9%, respectively (P = 0.106). Status at transplantation was the most predictive factor for the survival after HDC/PBSCT (EFS for CR 70.8+/-9.5% vs non-CR 20.0+/-17.9%, P = 0.008). Transplantation-related complications were minimal, and infection was the most prevalent complication. HDC/PBSCT is considered applicable to recurrent or refractory pediatric NHL patients safely and it could replace conventional chemotherapy. In this study, children with CR status at the time of HDC/PBSCT showed higher survival rate. However, refractory or recurrent lymphoblastic lymphoma patients showed dismal results. Therefore, new therapeutic modalities may be needed for this group of NHL patients.

Recent advances in childhood cancer treatment have increased survival rates to 80%. Two out of three survivors experience late effects (LEs). From a group of 241 survivors previously described, 193 were followed at the long-term follow-up clinic (LTFC) of Severance Hospital in Korea; the presence of LEs was confirmed by oncologists. We reported the change in LEs during 3 yr of follow-up. The median follow-up from diagnosis was 10.4 yr (5.1-26.2 yr). Among 193 survivors, the percentage of patients with at least one LE increased from 63.2% at the initial visit to 75.1% at the most recent visit (P = 0.011). The proportion of patients having multiple LEs and grade 2 or higher LEs increased from the initial visit (P = 0.001 respectively). Forty-eight non-responders to the LTFC were older and had less frequent and severe LEs than responders at initial visit (all P < 0.05). In multivariate analysis, younger age at diagnosis, older age at initial visit, a diagnosis of a brain tumor or lymphoma, and use of radiotherapy were significant risk factors for LEs (all P < 0.05). Adverse changes in LEs were seen among the survivors, regardless of most clinical risk factors. They need to receive comprehensive, long-term follow up.