ABSTRACT
Neonatal tumours are rare: only 2.6 per cent of tumours in children occur in this age range. Of these tumours, 30-40 per cent are malignant. However, some tumours that look malignant histologically may act in a benign fashion, and some benign tumours may prove to be fatal because of their anatomical position, e.g. epignathus. The neonatal death rate from malignancy in the USA has been estimated at one per 6.4 million live births, but this is probably an underestimate, as sacrococcygeal teratomas (SCTs) were not included. A study in Denmark showed an incidence of 2.4 per 100 000 births, with the most common tumour being neuroblastoma (26 per cent) (Borch et al. 1994). Retinoblastoma, neuroblastoma and Wilms tumour have the best prognoses. Overall survival is around 45-55 per cent.
