Abstract

TOZIANO, Rafael et al. Perfil sociodemográfico y de la atención de pacientes oncológicos provenientes de cinco provincias en un hospital de atención terciaria. Arch. argent. pediatr. [online]. 2004, vol.102, n.4, pp.301-307. ISSN 0325-0075.

Introduction. Pediatric patients with cancer must remain for extremely long periods out of their homes. Objective. The aim of this study includes two main objectives. The first is to describe the clinical and social behavior of pediatric patients with cancer referred to Buenos Aires, for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes, to a tertiary care center and must remain for a long time in this city, far away from their homes. The second objective is to evaluate the regional conditions to carry out the management of these patients in different periods of their illnesses in local hospitals to diminish the social impact that these chronic illnesses produce on them. Population, material & methods. Patients with cancer, all of them living in five Argentinean provinces located in the Nort-East of the country were assisted at the Hospital Garrahan in Buenos Aires and were enrolled in this study. The selected patients were admitted to the Cytostatic Administration Unit to receive courses of prolonged chemotherapy during the period June 1996-May 1998. Medical (diagnosis, number of visits and hospitalizations, autcomes) and social (family structure, residence conditions, social assistance) variables were analyzed. Two regional pediatric centers were visited and evaluated. Results. We analyzed fifty patients (26 boys and 24 girls). They had different types of pediatric cancers and their ages ranged between 0.4 and 15.9 years old (median 4.9). Eighty eight percent of the patients had one or more siblings and 26% lived in extreme poverty. Predominant diagnosis was leukaemia (42%). Chemotherapy complications were managed with conventional treatment. Patients who completed treatment spent 1-2 years in Buenos Aires. Up to the date of this report 33 patients (66%), had been under treatment for more than six months. Regional pediatric centers have specializad staff, surgeons, intensive care units, laboratory and image diagnoses support. Conclusions. Efforts must be made to shorten the time of diagnosis and therapeutical indications. Hereafter, it would be convenient to continue treatment in their own provinces in accordance with an oncological team.

Keywords : Pediatric cancer; Medical care networks.

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