Table 3.
Age-adjusted rate ratios of selected chronic health conditions first occurring 5 or more years following diagnosis in neuroblastoma survivors compared with siblings*
| Condition | Cumulative incidence at 20 y since diagnosis of survivors (%) | Survivors | Siblings | RR (95% CI) | P |
| Any condition | 41.1 | 252.2 | 30.4 | 8.3 (7.1 to 9.7) | <.001 |
| Musculoskeletal conditions | 7.8 | 53.2 | 2.6 | 20.1 (12.1 to 35.3) | <.001 |
| Severe scoliosis† | 5.8 | 42.9 | 1.6 | 27.0 (13.6 to 53.4) | <.001 |
| Osteoporosis | 2.3 | 12.5 | 0.9 | 13.2 (5.5 to 32.1) | <.001 |
| Neurological conditions | 29.8 | 152.9 | 20.0 | 7.6 (6.4 to 9.1) | <.001 |
| Weakness in arms or legs | 13.7 | 35.3 | 1.6 | 22.7 (16.4 to 31.6) | <.001 |
| Decreased sense of touch and feeling in hands, fingers, arms, or legs | 10.7 | 45.5 | 4.4 | 10.2 (7.6 to 13.7) | <.001 |
| Prolonged pain or abnormal sensations in arms, legs, or back | 13.7 | 82.4 | 11.8 | 7.0 (5.4 to 9.1) | <.001 |
| Problems with balance | 8.1 | 36.4 | 3.8 | 9.6 (6.8 to 13.5) | <.001 |
| Seizures | 6.6 | 24.4 | 4.1 | 6.0 (4.2 to 8.7) | <.001 |
| Tremor or movement problems | 5.4 | 13.7 | 1.2 | 11.2 (7.0 to 18.0) | <.001 |
| Paralysis, unspecified | 5.5 | 14.5 | 1.3 | 11.3 (7.3 to 17.5) | <.001 |
| Endocrine conditions | 8.3 | 67.9 | 5.21 | 13.0 (8.9 to 19.1) | <.001 |
| Medication needed to initiate puberty | 3.1 | 41.7 | 0.8 | 55.4 (16.1 to 191.1) | <.001 |
| Growth hormone deficiency | 4.2 | 24.6 | 0.6 | 38.5 (15.2 to 97.3) | <.001 |
| Growth hormone injections | 2.8 | 14.3 | 0.4 | 37.0 (12.7 to 107.6) | <.001 |
| Hypothyroidism | 4.1 | 33.7 | 4.0 | 8.4 (5.1 to 13.6) | <.001 |
| Sensory conditions | 8.6 | 22.6 | 2.8 | 8.0 (5.6 to 11.3) | <.001 |
| Cataract | 3.1 | 10.8 | 0.7 | 16.2 (7.3 to 35.8) | <.001 |
| Hearing loss/deafness‡ | 3.8 | 6.8 | 0.8 | 8.7 (5.2 to 14.6) | <.001 |
| Blindness§ | 3.1 | 11.0 | 1.6 | 6.9 (4.0 to 11.8) | .004 |
Rates are listed per 10 000 person-years. Two-sided statistical inference (Wald confidence intervals and tests) from Poisson regression was used with the modification by generalized estimating equations to account for potential within-family correlation. Incidence rates per 10 000 person-years were age-adjusted rates at age 15 years. Statistical tests were two-sided. CI = confidence interval; RR = rate ratio.
Severe scoliosis was further analyzed within survivors in relation to receiving laminectomy, thoracotomy, and radiotherapy to the spine: The results are described in the text.
Hearing loss requiring a hearing aid or deafness not corrected by a hearing aid.
Legally blind or loss of an eye.