Radiotherapy key role in pediatric oncology, despite the potential side effects especially in the long term, including the risk of radioinduced second cancers.
Very rarely malignant neoplasms typical of children and adolescents may present in adulthood, historically with a worse outcome, but for some of these histologies demonstrated recent results overlapping with those in pediatric age when treated with strategies similar to pediatric protocols and similar radiotherapy.
Long-term data on outcome and incidence of potential toxicity late radiation therapy in these populations almost exclusively from epidemiologic studies or retrospective case series. Prospective data are lacking, particularly in patients treated with IMRT and specifically with certain IMRT modalities such as Helical Tomotherapy, for which the CRO pediatric radiotherapy has documented experience. The main objective is to evaluate the short- and long-term toxicity secondary to radiotherapy performed at the Pediatric Radiotherapy of the CRO in Aviano, with specific subgroup analyses aimed at highlighting any differences mainly by age, pathology and radiotherapy technique.