Impact of Delay Prior to Treatment in Ethiopian Children with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia

More than 85% of childhood malignancies occur in developing countries with less than a 30% cure rate as opposed to more than 80% cure rate in developed countries. This disproportionately significant difference might be due to delays in diagnosis, treatment initiation, lack of adequate supportive care, and treatment abandonment. We aimed to determine the impact of overall treatment delay on induction mortality of children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia treated at Tikur Anbessa specialized hospital (TASH).

A cross-sectional study was conducted among children who were treated from 2016 to 2019. Children with Down syndrome and relapsed leukemia were excluded from this study.

A total of 166 children were included; most patients were males (71.7%). The mean age at diagnosis was 5.9 years. The median time interval from the onset of symptoms to the first TASH visit was 30 days and the median period from TASH's first clinic visit to diagnosis was 11 days. The median time to initiate chemotherapy after diagnosis was 8 days. The total median time from the first onset of symptoms to chemotherapy initiation was 53.5 days. Induction mortality was 31.3%. High-risk ALL and patients with an overall delay between 30 and 90 days were more likely to experience induction mortality.

Patient and healthcare system delay is high compared to most studies done and a significant association has been noted with induction mortality. Efforts to expand the pediatric oncology service in the country and efficient diagnostic and treatment approach need to be established to reduce mortality associated with overall delay.