Wilms Tumor: Course and Prognosis

With current therapeutic methods, about 90% of all affected patients can be cured in the long term. In individual cases, the prognosis depends on the stage of the tumor and its tissue types and composition.

What is the course and prognosis?

Complications may occur with each method, for example:

  • Bleeding and inflammation during surgery.
  • Occlusion of the hepatic veins, hearing impairment, anemia, or heart disease during chemotherapy
  • Impairment of lung function, connective tissue hardening or cancer (years later) as a result of irradiation

Recurrences, or recurrence of the treated cancer, and complications occur most often in the first two years after completion of therapy. For this reason, the children must be particularly closely monitored during this period – at the beginning at intervals of a few weeks, then later months. In addition to the doctor’s consultation and the clinical examination, this also includes an ultrasound of the abdomen, an X-ray of the lungs and the determination of blood and urine values.

Depending on the type of tumor and therapy, bone scintigraphy, ECG and heart ultrasound and hearing tests may then be added.