Development of Risk-Based Guidelines for Pediatric Cancer Survivors: The Children's Oncology Group Long-Term Follow-Up Guidelines From the Children's Oncology Group Late Effects Committee and Nursing Discipline

TLDR

The Children’s Oncology Group Long‑Term Follow‑Up Guidelines for survivors of childhood, adolescent, and young adult cancers are risk‑based, exposure‑related clinical practice guidelines designed to promote earlier detection and intervention for treatment‑related complications, and they are essential for a wide range of health‑care providers. The guidelines aim to increase awareness of potential late effects and to standardize and enhance follow‑up care for pediatric cancer survivors by promoting earlier detection and intervention for treatment‑related complications. Developed by a multidisciplinary panel of experts, the guidelines are evidence‑based, linking therapeutic exposures to late effects to identify high‑risk categories and matching risk magnitude with screening intensity; they are intended for use beginning two or more years after therapy completion and are accompanied by patient education materials (“Health Links”). The guidelines and accompanying Health Links are available for download at www.survivorshipguidelines.org.

Abstract

The Children’s Oncology Group Long-Term Follow-Up Guidelines for Survivors of Childhood, Adolescent, and Young Adult Cancers are risk-based, exposure-related clinical practice guidelines intended to promote earlier detection of and intervention for complications that may potentially arise as a result of treatment for pediatric malignancies. Developed through the collaborative efforts of the Children’s Oncology Group Late Effects Committee, Nursing Discipline, and Patient Advocacy Committee, these guidelines represent a statement of consensus from a multidisciplinary panel of experts in the late effects of pediatric cancer treatment. The guidelines are both evidence-based (utilizing established associations between therapeutic exposures and late effects to identify high-risk categories) and grounded in the collective clinical experience of experts (matching the magnitude of risk with the intensity of screening recommendations). They are intended for use beginning 2 or more years following the completion of cancer therapy; however, they are not intended to provide guidance for follow-up of the survivor’s primary disease. A complementary set of patient education materials (“Health Links”) was developed to enhance follow-up care and broaden the application of the guidelines. The information provided in these guidelines is important for health care providers in the fields of pediatrics, oncology, internal medicine, family practice, and gynecology, as well as subspecialists in many fields. Implementation of these guidelines is intended to increase awareness of potential late effects and to standardize and enhance follow-up care provided to survivors of pediatric cancer throughout the lifespan. The Guidelines, and related Health Links, can be downloaded in their entirety at www.survivorshipguidelines.org .