Beyond the Well-Child Examination: Dedicated Surveillance in the First Year of Life for Children Genetically Predisposed to Developing Cancer

Deleterious changes in cancer predisposition genes can increase the risk for malignancy in children starting as early as birth. Pending the potential introduction of universal screening programs, in which all newborns may be tested for pathogenic/likely pathogenic variants in established susceptibility genes, coordination amongst health care professionals (including the pediatrician) is necessary to identify children with hereditary syndromes at a young age and to initiate surveillance. This review provides a high-level overview of cancers that are observed in the first year of life, genes known to confer germline predisposition, methods for cancer detection beyond the well-child examination, and areas of current research.