Follow-up bij kinderen met rabdomyosarcoom

Children treated for rhabdomyosarcoma are subject to protocolized follow-up imaging to detect a potential relapse earlier and to improve the chances of survival in case of a relapse. In this study we report on our findings concerning the clinical value of radiologic imaging in patients with rhabdomyosarcoma. We showed that the majority of relapses were detected by clinical symptoms, despite the frequent imaging. These results were used to define a new follow-up recommendation that was successfully implemented in the current European paediatric Soft tissue sarcoma Study Group guideline. In this new recommendation we reduced the number of radiologic imaging examinations performed after end-of-therapy by 50%, and decreased the follow-up time after end-of-therapy to 2 years.