Nutritional status and factors affecting it in children with central nervous system tumors after anti-tumor therapy: a retrospective analysis

Objective. To study the prevalence of nutritional status (NS) disorders and possible factors affecting these processes in children with central nervous system (CNS) tumors who underwent anti-tumor therapy. Patients and methods. A retrospective analysis of data from 109 patients aged 8 to 17 years (42.2% of boys) was performed, of whom 57.8% had malignant tumors (MT) of the CNS and 42.2% had benign tumors (BT). The post-treatment period was 1 to 58 months. The body mass index (BMI), fat mass index (FMI), fat-free mass index (FFMI), dietary composition, and endocrine disorders (growth hormone (GH) deficiency and hypothyroidism) were examined. Results. BMI was within the reference range in 54.1% of children, normal body composition was revealed in 29.4%. GH deficiency was found in 27.5% of children, and excess body fat in 43.1%. BMI (p = 0.009) and FFMI (p = 0.011) were lower in children with MT than in children with BT. In children with the post-treatment period of 2 to 5 years, BMI was higher (p = 0.041). Patients with MT were more likely to have GH deficiency (p = 0.016), the frequency of hypothyroidism did not differ in children with MT and BT. A direct association was found between the frequency of intake of dairy, fermented dairy, combination of dairy and meat dishes and the value of FFMI, pasta combined with meat or sausage products and FMI, and an inverse association between FFMI and intake of sugar products. Conclusions. In children with CNS tumors, nutritional disorders are common after anti-tumor therapy that do not tend to improve over time. Measuring BMI alone is not sufficient to assess nutritional status. Dietary disturbances in a significant proportion of patients provide grounds for dietary correction in practice. Key words: children, brain tumors, long-term outcomes, nutritional status, body composition, nutrition