[Neuroblastomas treated at the Gustave-Roussy Institute from 1975 to 1979. 173 cases]

From 1975 to 1979, 173 children with neuroblastoma were treated according to the same protocol at the Institut Gustave-Roussy. They were classified according to the site of the primary tumor (abdominal: 122; thoracic: 29; others: 22) and according to TNM staging (stage I: 8; stage II: 24; stage III: 35; stage IV: 99; stage V: 2). Depending on stage and age, treatment consisted of surgery and radiotherapy associated with cyclic multiagent chemotherapy (vincristine, Adriamycin, cyclophosphamide). It resulted in a significant improvement of prognosis in stage III patients, especially those with abdominal tumors. In the latter group, prognosis depended mainly on the possibilities of resection of the tumors. Therefore, making these tumors operable remains the major goal of therapy in such patients. Radiotherapy is quite efficient in sterilizing the small post-surgical residual tumors. Prognosis in children over 1 year of age with metastases still remains very poor, even though the quality of the survival is improved.