تسجيل الدخول

تسجيل

Acute Myeloid Leukemia in Children : Epidemiology

المؤلف:  Hoffman, R., Benz, E. J., Silberstein, L. E., Heslop, H., Weitz, J., & Salama, M. E.

المصدر:  Hematology : Basic Principles and Practice

الجزء والصفحة:  8th E , P1013

2026-10-29

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AML accounts for approximately 20% of cases of acute leukemia in children and adolescents younger than 20 years of age. The incidence rates have remained constant over the past 40 years, are similar between boys and girls, and are highest during the first 2 years of life before the incidence rises again in adolescents/young adults. However, the age distribution may vary between subtypes. For example, acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) and core-binding factor (CBF) leukemia are rare in children younger than 3 years of age, whereas the incidence of acute megakaryoblastic leukemia (AMKL) and “myeloid leukemia of Down syndrome” (ML DS) is highest in infants and young children, yet rare among teenagers. The distribution of AML subtypes may also vary among ethnic groups, with some studies suggesting a higher incidence of APL among Hispanic/Mediterranean populations.

Constitutional syndromes that are associated with an increased predisposition to AML include Down syndrome (DS), Fanconi anemia, Bloom syndrome, neurofibromatosis, Noonan syndrome, congenital neutropenia, and germline haploinsufficiency of the specific oncogenes (e.g., the Runt-related transcription factor-1 or RUNX1 gene), though these constitute only a small subset of AML diagnosed in children. The World Health Organization (WHO) 2016 classification also provides a listing of myeloid malignancies that can develop in patients with germline predispositions (Table 1). Exposure to ionizing radiation, alkylating agents, topoisomerase II inhibitors, and benzene are among the few environmental factors proven to increase the risk of AML. In the majority of cases of childhood AML, neither a genetic nor environmental cause can be identified.

Table1. The 2016 World Health Organization Classification of Acute Myeloid Leukemia and Related Neoplasms