title: A pilot study of screening for neuroblastoma in the north of England.
abstract: A pilot study has been carried out to assess the feasibility of screening for neuroblastoma in 6-month-old infants in the north of England. A total of 20,829 infants were screened. Two true-positive cases were found, along with eight false-positive and three false-negative cases. It was shown that the concentrations of catecholamine metabolites in the urine are dependent on the creatinine content; centiles have been established to allow this relationship to be taken into account. Five of the eight false-positive cases would have been correctly assessed as normal if the new centiles had been used. Preliminary results lend support to the need for a well-designed study of neuroblastoma screening to be carried out, with death from this disease as the only end point.
authors.affiliation: Department of Child Health, University of Newcastle Upon Tyne, England.
authors.forename: A W
authors.initials: AW
authors.lastname: Craft
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Parker
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Dale
authors.forename: A C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: McGill
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Seviour
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bell
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cole
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Smith
mesh_terms: D004739:England / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006719:Homovanillic Acid / Q000652:urine; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods*; D009447:Neuroblastoma / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000401:mortality / Q000652:urine; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D014642:Vanilmandelic Acid / Q000652:urine
chemical_list: D014642:Vanilmandelic Acid; D006719:Homovanillic Acid