The relationship between prognosis and scintigraphic evidence of bone metastases in neuroblastoma

The clinical records, scintigrams, radiographic skeletal surveys, and bone marrow aspiration and trephine results of 30 children with neuroblastoma were reviewed to determine the relationship between the result of the scintigram and the clinical outcome of the patient. The nine patients with normal radiographic skeletal surveys and no evidence of bone metastases on scintigraphy are alive and well having been off treatment for between 14 and 83 months. Eleven of the 13 children who had bone metastases on scintigraphy and radiography have died, as have seven of the eight patients who had positive scintigrams and normal radiographs. Scintigraphic evidence of bone metastases is associated with a very poor prognosis irrespective of the results of other investigations.