PS-092 Nutritional Status Of Children Diagnosed With Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia At The Children Cancer Centre

Abstract

Background and aims Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) is the most common malignancy among children. Malnutrition remains a major concern for paediatric oncologists. Although studies have shown that malnutrition can negatively affect treatment outcome, results are still controversial. This retrospective cohort study aims at determining the prevalence of malnutrition and its association with treatment outcome and infection among children with ALL treated at the Children Cancer Centre in Lebanon (CCCL) Methods 108 children and adolescents diagnosed with ALL between April 2002 and May 2010 were enrolled in the study. Anthropometric data were collected from patient's medical record upon diagnosis, at 3 and 6 months, and at the end of treatment. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated for children > 2 years while weight for height ratio was used for patients < 2 years. Patients were considered underweight, stunted, or wasted if their z-scores were