Survivors

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The cure rate of children with cancer increased significantly over the past decades. As a consequence, a substantial number of survivors will experience one or more treatment related effects during their life. Your doctor will propose a follow-up plan just after treatment but also on the long term to detect these late effects at an early stage.

The BSPHO is represented in different national and international initiatives, such as PanCare, to improve guidelines for follow-up of childhood cancer survivors.

Your child has finished treatment

When your child has finished its treatment, the doctor will re-discuss the possible late effects in detail and will propose a specific follow-up visit schedule. The follow-up examinations and its frequency will depend on the type of cancer and the treatment your child received . The first year after treatment, these visits and examinations will be frequent, but will decrease in frequency over time.

Long-term follow-up

Children treated for cancer can still experience problems long after treatment has finished. Therefore, a long-term follow-up schedule is important even during adult life.

Most long-term effects are caused by the chemotherapy or radiotherapy your child received. These long-term effects depend on the type and dosage of the treatment, and the age of the child during treatment. The effects are usually progressive, can be irreversible and can include problems in growth, development, heart, lung, kidney and fertility. That’s why it is important to detect these late effects at an early stage to propose the appropriate treatment.

More Information

For more information regarding late effects and guidelines we refer to the following websites:

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Survivors

Let's do this together

Your child has finished treatment

Long-term follow-up

More Information

Belgian Society of Paediatric Haematology Oncology

BSPHO

Information