Survival of children with liver tumours in Europe 1978--1989.

Hepatic tumours are rare in childhood. Within the frame of the EUROCARE II study, a total of 328 liver tumours in patients aged 0--14 years were reported during the period 1978--1989. The childhood cancer registries in UK and Germany contributed approximately a third of the cases each. Hepatoblastoma accounted for 71% of cases. The 5-year survival was 36% 95% confidence interval (CI) 28--46%, with no significant difference between the genders. Patients aged 10--14 years did worse, especially boys. Survival improved significantly during the study period. Survival in hepatocellular carcinoma was lower, 20% (95% CI 6--52%), and showed no improvement during the study period.