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Abstract Introduction: Pediatric solid tumors are a diverse group of rare cancers that occur in children. Recent advancements in therapy, such as immunotherapy, targeted therapy, and precision medicine, have shown promise in improving treatment outcomes for these cancers. Moreover, health disparities in the incidence and mortality rates of pediatric solid tumors have been reported between US racial/ethnic groups, where Hispanics and African ethnicities present higher rates of incidence and metastatic disease. Despite disparities observed in pediatric solid tumors among US Hispanics, no information exists for Puerto Rican Hispanic children with cancer. Thus, this study aims to understand and describe the epidemiology of a Hispanic population of pediatric patients diagnosed with solid tumors living in Puerto Rico. Methods: Age-adjusted incidence rates (IR) and mortality rates (MR) for specific childhood cancers (ages 0-19) were estimated using data obtained from the Incidence Case File from the Puerto Rico Central Cancer Registry for the period 2009-2020. Results: During this period, 666MS1pediatric patients were diagnosed with cancer, with malignant bone tumors comprising 4.7% of cases and with an age-adjusted incidence rate of 6.0 cases per million. Among pediatric patients with malignant bone tumors, 34.6% presented with regional disease and 23.1% presented with distant metastatic disease at diagnosis. The mortality rate for pediatric cancers involving bone and joints was 2.4 cases per million. Conclusions: This is a first-of-its-kind analysis in a Hispanic cohort of pediatric solid tumor patients in Puerto Rico. Understanding the disparities in solid pediatric tumors within this Hispanic population is crucial for developing targeted interventions that improve diagnosis, treatment, and survival rates for these children who face other disparities, including limited access to specialized care and economic barriers, among others. Publishing this data is essential as it raises awareness, guides resource allocation, and informs policy decisions to address healthcare inequities. Future studies should explore risk factors and differential gene expression. Acknowledgement: The authors extend gratitude to the Biostatistics and Bioinformatics Core of the UPR Comprehensive Cancer Center and the PR Central Cancer Registry for collaborating in our research. Citation Format: Carolyn M. Ruiz-Perez, Rocío K. Rivera-Valentín. Addressing inequities in pediatric solid tumors: Insights from Hispanics in Puerto Rico abstract. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference in Cancer Research: Advances in Pediatric Cancer Research; 2024 Sep 5-8; Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2024;84(17 Suppl):Abstract nr B046.
Ruiz-Perez et al. (Thu,) studied this question.