The growing prevalence of childhood cancer survivors in Australia

Abstract

AbstractSurvivors of childhood cancer have an increased risk of long‐term health issues arising mostly from the side effects of treatment. Using population‐based data from the Australian Childhood Cancer Registry (ACCR) for children aged 0–14 at diagnosis between 1983 and 2018, there were a total of 17,468 prevalent cases of childhood cancer survivors on 31 December 2018. We also found an 80% increase in the number of 5‐year prevalent cases, from 1979 in 1988 to 3566 in 2018. Both short‐ and long‐term prevalence estimates are important for monitoring childhood cancer survivorship and planning for the specific needs of this expanding cohort.