RT Book, Section
A1 Olson, Thomas A.
A2 Rudolph, Colin D.
A2 Rudolph, Abraham M.
A2 Lister, George E.
A2 First, Lewis R.
A2 Gershon, Anne A.
SR Print(0)
ID 7043667
T1 Chapter 459. Germ Cell Tumors
T2 Rudolph's Pediatrics, 22e
YR 2011
FD 2011
PB The McGraw-Hill Companies
PP New York, NY
SN 978-0-07-149723-7
LK accesspediatrics.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=7043667
RD 2024/04/19
AB Germ  cell  tumors  are  infrequent  tumors  in  childhood  and  adolescence.  These  neoplasms  comprise  2%  to  3%  of  all  tumors  diagnosed  in  children  and  adolescents  ages  0  to  15  years,1  with  an  annual  incidence  of  approximately  3  per  million.  Extracranial  germ  cell  tumors  are  more  common  in  adolescents  15  to  19  years  of  age,  accounting  for  16%  of  cancer  diagnoses  in  this  age  group  (Fig.  459-1).  Ninety  percent  of  germ  cell  tumors  diagnosed  during  adult  life  are  gonadal,  whereas  two  thirds  of  childhood  germ  cell  tumors  are  extragonadal.  The  age  distribution  for  childhood  germ  cell  tumors  is  bimodal,  with  a  peak  at  3  years  of  age  and  a  second  peak  during  adolescence.  One  third  of  germ  cell  tumors  of  childhood  are  malignant,  but  most  neonatal  germ  cell  tumors,  irrespective  of  location,  are  benign.  However,  despite  the  relative  infrequency  of  malignant  tissue,  there  is  a  high  associated  morbidity  due  to  obstruction  of  airway,  hydrops  fetalis,  and  premature  delivery.2,3  With  advancing  age,  the  proportion  of  malignant  germ  cell  tumors  increases.