Department of Pediatric Chemotherapy

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Childhood cancer remains the leading cause of death by disease among children in the world. Every day, 42 children are diagnosed with cancer and the average age of diagnosis is 6. Cancer affects all ethnic, gender, and socio-economic groups and more than 40,000 children undergo treatment for cancer each year. Worldwide, it is estimated that childhood cancer has an incidence of more than 175,000 per year, and a mortality rate of approximately 96,000 per year. The most common cancers in children are (childhood) leukemia (34%), brain tumors (23%), and lymphomas (12%). The main subtypes of brain and central nervous system tumors in children are: astrocytoma, brain stem glioma, craniopharyngioma, desmoplastic infantile ganglioglioma, ependymoma, high-grade glioma, medulloblastoma and atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumor.

Other, less common childhood cancer types are:

• Neuroblastoma (7%)
• Wilms tumor (5%)
• Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (4%)
• Rhabdomyosarcoma (3%)
• Retinoblastoma (3%)
• Osteosarcoma (3%)
• Ewing sarcoma (1%)
• Germ cell tumors
• Pleuropulmonary blastoma
• Hepatoblastoma and hepatocellular carcinoma

The cancers that strike kids and there are many are different from adult cancers:

Childhood cancers are not related to lifestyle factors and little can be done to prevent them. Even when kids get cancers that adults get—like lymphoma—they must be treated differently. Children are not simply smaller adults!

Many adult cancers can be diagnosed early. In 80% of kids, cancer has already spread to other areas of the body by the time it is diagnosed.

There are over a dozen types of childhood cancers, and countless subtypes, making it more challenging for researchers to find cures for every kid.

National Cancer Centre’s Children’s Research Hospital opened in 2012 and has served about 100 patients since time. It was opened by First Lady of Azerbaijan and President of Haydar Aliyev Foundation Mehriban Aliyeva and Director of National Center of Oncology Academician Jamil Aliyev. The missions of  hospital is to find cures for children with catastrophic illness, through research and treatment. Children who have a disease that is being studied at Children’s Research Hospital, and who are eligible for a clinical research protocol at the hospital .Each patient treated at Children’s Research Hospital   helps to advance medical research  by participating in the research done at  the our hospital.

Our pediatric oncologists managing patients with different diseases –Wilms tumor, neuroblastoma, hepatoblastoma, germinoma tumors, teratoma, rhabdomyosarkoma, brain tumors, osteosarkoma, Ewing’s sarcoma, primitive neuroectodermal tumor, leykemia, lymphoma ets. There are 4 doctors work in chemotherapy department.  Khalafova Leyla -chief of department, PhD; Babayeva Naila- oncohematologist; Ahadova Nazrin- assistant in the Department of Oncology of Azerbaijan State Institution named after Aziz Aliyev; Alasgarova Gunel-resident of Russian Oncology Scientific Cancer Center named after Blochin. They  are able to master the  basics of children’s diagnostic for cancer patients. They independently  performed calculations, diluting and injections of the chemical drugs, took part in surgical operations, blood specimen  and blood substitutes transfusion, independently performed palpation and puncture of tumor mass, tru-cut biopsy,  pleural, bone marrow, cerebro-spinal, sternal puncture, mastered laboratory methods of examinations. They revealed proficiency level in their practice, wrote a number of articles and abstracts, and participated in international scientific conferences and congress.

In 2007 Pediatric Oncology and Hematology Conference was held first time in Azerbaijan.
In 2012- first Pediatric Oncology Azerbaijan-Turkish symposium  and
In 2014- two conference about diagnostic and treatment of malignant tumors in pediatric practice was held.