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Neuroblastoma

 

 
 

Neuroblastoma is a cancer that forms in your nerve tissue. It usually begins in the adrenal glands, which sit atop your kidneys. It may also begin in your neck, chest or spinal cord. The cancer often begins in early childhood. Sometimes it begins before a child is born. By the time doctors find the cancer, it has usually spread to other parts of the body. The most common symptoms are

  • A lump in the abdomen, neck or chest
  • Bulging eyes
  • Dark circles around the eyes
  • Bone pain
  • Swollen stomach and trouble breathing in babies
  • Painless, bluish lumps under the skin in babies
  • Inability to move a body part

Treatments include surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy or a combination. Sometimes before giving treatment, doctors wait to see whether symptoms get worse. This is called watchful waiting.

NIH: National Cancer Institute

 
 
 
 

 

 
 
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Photograph of a woman reading to a young girl in a hospital bed

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