REVIEW article

Front. Oncol.

Sec. Pediatric Oncology

Volume 15 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fonc.2025.1520171

This article is part of the Research TopicImmunological Therapies in Pediatric Cancers: A Latin American PerspectiveView all 4 articles

High-Risk Neuroblastoma in Mexico: From Multimodal Treatment to Immunotherapy. Regarding the first case treated with Naxitamab

Provisionally accepted
Alberto  Olaya VargasAlberto Olaya Vargas1*Haydee  Salazar-RosalesHaydee Salazar-Rosales1Marcela  Caballero-PalaciosMarcela Caballero-Palacios2Nideshda  Ramírez-UribeNideshda Ramírez-Uribe3Gerardo  López-HernándezGerardo López-Hernández3Erika  Morales-MartinezErika Morales-Martinez3María  Cervantes-DelgadoMaría Cervantes-Delgado3Liliana  Velasco HidalgoLiliana Velasco Hidalgo2Araceli  Castellanos-ToledoAraceli Castellanos-Toledo2Rocío  Cárdenas-CardosRocío Cárdenas-Cardos2,4Ana  Niembro-ZúñigaAna Niembro-Zúñiga2Roberto  Rivera-LunaRoberto Rivera-Luna2Alberto  Olaya-NietoAlberto Olaya-Nieto3Jesús  Ponce-CruzJesús Ponce-Cruz4Jaime  ShalkowJaime Shalkow4Yadira  Melchor-VidalYadira Melchor-Vidal4Rodrigo  Díaz-MachorroRodrigo Díaz-Machorro4
  • 1Department of Hematopoietic Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, National Institute of Pediatrics (Mexico), Mexico City, Mexico
  • 2Oncology Service of the National Institute of Pediatrics., Mexico City, Mexico
  • 3Instituto Nacional de Pediatria. Department of Hematopoietic Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, Mexico City, Mexico
  • 4Pediatric Hemato-Oncology Unit, ABC Medical Center, Mexico City, Mexico

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

The primary objective of implementing novel immunotherapeutic strategies, in addition to improving event-free survival (EFS) and overall survival (OS) in patients diagnosed with high-risk neuroblastoma, is to reduce adverse effects and lower both short-and long-term mortality. It is worth noting that the current cost of anti-GD2 therapies available in Latin America is estimated to exceed $450,000 USD. In a country like Mexico, where the minimum daily wage is approximately $10 USD, access to these therapies remains unattainable for the majority of the population. Therefore, it is essential to highlight the importance and substantial clinical impact of immunotherapy on survival outcomes in patients with refractory neuroblastoma. This recognition should support advocacy for broader access to these therapies. Despite their high costs, the demonstrated benefits should outweigh the disadvantages, justifying efforts to make them accessible to all patient populations.Future studies in LMICs including Mexico and Latin America, must focus on optimizing dosing strategies to minimize adverse effects and improve both survival outcomes and the quality of life for patients receiving immunotherapy.

Keywords: Neuroblastoma High Risk, Inmunotherapy, naxitamab, Latin America, pediatric cancer

Received: 30 Oct 2024; Accepted: 23 May 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 Olaya Vargas, Salazar-Rosales, Caballero-Palacios, Ramírez-Uribe, López-Hernández, Morales-Martinez, Cervantes-Delgado, Velasco Hidalgo, Castellanos-Toledo, Cárdenas-Cardos, Niembro-Zúñiga, Rivera-Luna, Olaya-Nieto, Ponce-Cruz, Shalkow, Melchor-Vidal and Díaz-Machorro. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence: Alberto Olaya Vargas, Department of Hematopoietic Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, National Institute of Pediatrics (Mexico), Mexico City, Mexico

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