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Background: Iraq's health care system has gradually declined after several decades of wars, terrorism, and UN economic sanctions. The Oncology Unit at Children's Welfare Teaching Hospital (CWTH) in Baghdad was lacking basic facilities and support. To address this shortcoming, a humanitarian and educational partnership was established between CWTH and Sapienza University of Rome (SUR). Methods: We investigated the outcomes of 80 online and 16 onsite educational sessions and 142 teleconsultation sessions from 2006 to 2014. We also determined the outcomes of pathology reviews by SUR of 1216 tissue specimens submitted by CWTH from 2007 until 2019 for second opinions. The primary outcomes were discordance, concordance, and changes among clinical diagnoses and pathology review findings. The measures included the frequency of teleconsultation and tele‐education sessions, the topics discussed in these sessions, and the number of pathology samples requiring second opinions. Findings: A total of 500 cases were discussed via teleconsultations during the study period. The median patient age was 7 years (range, 24 days to 16·4 years), and the cases comprised 79 benign tumors, 299 leukemias, 120 lymphomas, and 97 solid tumors. The teleconsultation sessions yielded 27 diagnostic changes, 123 confirmed diagnoses, and 13 equivocal impacts. The pathology reviews by SUR were concordant for 996 (81·9%) cases, discordant for 186 (15·3%), and inconclusive for 34 (2·8%). The major cause of discordance was inadequate immunohistochemical staining. The percentage of discordance markedly decreased over time (from 40% to 10%). The cause of the improvement is multifactorial: training of two CWTH pathologists at SUR, better immunohistochemical staining, and the ongoing clinical and pathologic telemedicine activities. The partnership yielded 12 publications, six posters, and three oral presentations by CWTH investigators. Interpretation: The exchange of knowledge and expertise across continental boundaries meaningfully improved the diagnoses and management of pediatric cancer at CWTH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Modern treatments have dramatically improved the prognosis of childhood acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL). This progress has not yielded equivalent benefit in developing countries, where biological studies and supportive cares are insufficient and often unavailable. Since 2003, an all-trans retinoic (ATRA)-based, risk-adapted protocol was initiated in Baghdad. Patients were defined: high-risk with WBC ≥10 × 109/L and standard-risk with WBC <10 × 109/L. ATRA was included in induction and maintenance and, from 2010, in consolidation. Of 429 pediatric acute myeloid leukemia (September 2003–August 2019), 118 (27.5%) were APL. Six children died before therapy, 4 refused; 94/108 (87%) achieved a remission; 12 (11%) died early and 2 abandoned. The 5-year overall survival and event-free survival are 61.8% and 55.5% for all patients, 51.7% and 43.6% for first protocol, 68.4% and 63.9% for second one. Baseline WBC count was a risk factor for induction mortality; early hemorrhagic death remains a major cause of failure. ATRA extended consolidation improved results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We performed a retrospective analysis of 1415 acute lymphoblastic leukemia children diagnosed between January 2000 and December 2016 at Children Welfare Teaching Hospital, Baghdad, Iraq. Patients were divided into three cohorts according to treatment period (2000–2005; 2006–2011; 2012–2016). Treatments were based on modified-UKALL protocols; a steroid-pre-phase was introduced from September 2008. The overall complete remission was 86%, increased from 80% to 91% in the last period. Early deaths occurred in 10%, decreasing to 6%, overtime. Relapses were 23%; toxic deaths and abandonment 8% and 13%, respectively. At a median follow-up of 65.3 months, with abandonment considered as an event, the 5-year overall survival (OS) and event-free survival were 62.2% and 46.3%, statistically influenced by treatment period (5-year OS 62.6%, 59.1%, 66.3%; p=.057, respectively). Though pediatric ALL survival in Iraq is still below that observed in high income countries, survival rates progressively improved. Toxic deaths remain an important cause of failure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since 2000, an adapted LMB 96 protocol was implemented at the Children-Welfare-Teaching-Hospital in Baghdad for the treatment of childhood B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The first experience (2000–2005) demonstrated efficacy and feasibility of this protocol in Iraq. In 2006, further adjustments were made in an attempt to reduce therapy-related toxicities. The outcome of the second cohort of 190 children (2006–2010) and the comparison with the previous study are hereby reported. Out of the 180 treated patients, 120 achieved a complete response; during treatment 51 died and 9 abandoned. The 60-month overall survival (OS) and event-free survival (EFS) were 64.7 and 56.3%, respectively. No differences were observed in the 24-month OS and EFS between the 2000–2005 and 2006–2010 cohorts (66.3% vs. 65.1%; p =.89 and 53.3% vs. 57.3%; p =.28, respectively). Therapeutic group-B in the second cohort showed better outcome, although not significant, compared to the first one (EFS 62.9% vs. 53.8%; p =.088). Therapy-related mortality remained high. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]