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Purpose: Pleuropulmonary blastoma (PPB) is the most common lung cancer of infancy and early childhood and is associated with germline DICER1 variants. Type I and Ir PPB are cystic lesions treated surgically, with a subset of children with type I receiving chemotherapy. Type II and III are more aggressive lesions, treated with surgery, intensive chemotherapy and potentially radiation. We sought to assess health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in children with PPB and known germline DICER1 variants., Methods: Children with a diagnosis of PPB or germline DICER1 pathogenic variant without history of PPB or other DICER1-related neoplasm (DICER1+ only) were enrolled in the International PPB/DICER1 Registry. Parent reports for participants aged 2-17 years for the PedsQL v.4 and PedsQL Multidimensional Fatigue Scale v.3 were collected. Fatigue, physical, and psychosocial function scores were compared., Results: Analysis included 84 participants (PPB type Ir = 20, type I = 15, type II/III = 27, DICER1+ only = 22). Total fatigue scores of participants with type I and II/III PPB were lower compared to DICER1+ only, with effect size larger in type II/III (-0.82 vs. -0.40). Total psychosocial and physical functioning scores were lower in participants with type I and type II/III PPB compared to DICER1+ only, with larger effects noted in type II/III. Female sex was suggestive of worse HRQoL for both type I/Ir and type II/III cohorts., Conclusions: These data demonstrate the importance of regular HRQoL assessment in patients with a history of PPB as well as the importance and feasibility of studying HRQoL in children with rare tumors., (© 2022 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Background: Pleuropulmonary blastoma (PPB) is the most common lung cancer of infancy and early childhood. Type I PPB is a purely cystic lesion that has a microscopic population of primitive small cells with or without rhabdomyoblastic features and may progress to type II or III PPB, whereas type Ir lacks primitive small cells., Methods: Children with suspected PPB were enrolled in the International PPB/DICER1 Registry. Pathology was centrally reviewed, and follow-up was ascertained annually., Results: Between 2006 and 2022, 205 children had centrally reviewed type I or Ir PPB; 39% of children with type I and 5% of children with type Ir PPB received chemotherapy. Outcomes were favorable, although 11 children (nine with type I and two with type Ir PPB) experienced progression to type II/III (n = 8) or regrowth of type I PPB at the surgical site (n = 3), none of whom received chemotherapy before progression. Age and cyst size in combination were more suitable than either factor alone in predicting whether a particular lesion was type I or Ir PPB., Conclusions: For young children with type I PPB, outcomes are favorable, but complete resection is indicated because of the risk for progression. Chemotherapy may be useful in a subset of children at increased risk for recurrence/progression. Efforts to risk stratify children with type I PPB to optimize outcomes while reducing treatment-related side effects are underway., (© 2022 American Cancer Society.)

Purpose: Pleuropulmonary blastoma (PPB) is the most common primary lung neoplasm of infancy and early childhood. Type II and type III PPB have historically been associated with a poor prognosis., Methods: Patients with known or suspected PPB were enrolled in the International PPB/ DICER1 Registry. Medical records were abstracted with follow-up ascertained annually. All PPB diagnoses were confirmed by central pathology review. Beginning in 2007, the IVADo regimen (ifosfamide, vincristine, actinomycin-D, and doxorubicin) was recommended as a potential treatment regimen for children with type II and type III PPB. This regimen was compared with a historical control cohort., Results: From 1987 to 2021, 314 children with centrally confirmed type II and type III PPB who received upfront chemotherapy were enrolled; 132 children (75 with type II and 57 with type III) received IVADo chemotherapy. Adjusted analyses suggest improved overall survival for children treated with IVADo in comparison with historical controls with an estimated hazard ratio of 0.65 (95% CI, 0.39 to 1.08). Compared with localized disease, distant metastasis at diagnosis was associated with worse PPB event-free survival and overall survival with hazard ratio of 4.23 (95% CI, 2.42 to 7.38) and 4.69 (95% CI, 2.50 to 8.80), respectively., Conclusion: The use of IVADo in children with type II and type III PPB resulted in similar-to-improved outcomes compared with historical controls. Inferior outcomes with metastatic disease suggest the need for novel therapies. This large cohort of uniformly treated children with advanced PPB serves as a benchmark for future multicenter therapeutic studies for this rare pediatric tumor.

Purpose: DICER1 syndrome is an autosomal-dominant, pleiotropic tumor-predisposition disorder caused by pathogenic germline variants in DICER1. We sought to quantify risk, hazard rates, and the probability of neoplasm incidence accounting for competing risks ("cumulative incidence") of neoplasms (benign and malignant) and standardized incidence ratios for malignant tumors in individuals with DICER1 pathogenic variation., Patients and Methods: We combined data from three large cohorts of patients who carry germline pathogenic variation in DICER1. To reduce ascertainment bias, we distinguished probands from nonprobands. Neoplasm diagnoses were confirmed by review of pathology reports and/or central review of surgical pathology materials. Standardized cancer incidence ratios were determined relative to the SEER program, which does not capture all DICER1-associated neoplasms. For all malignancies and benign tumors ("neoplasms," excluding type Ir pleuropulmonary blastoma and thyroid nodules), we used the Kaplan-Meier method and nonparametric cumulative incidence curves to estimate neoplasm-free survival., Results: We calculated the age at first neoplasm diagnosis (systematically ascertained cancers plus DICER1-associated neoplasms pleuropulmonary blastoma, cystic nephroma, and nasal chondromesenchymal hamartoma) in 102 female and male nonproband DICER1 carriers. By age 10 years, 5.3% (95% CI, 0.6% to 9.7%) of nonproband DICER1 carriers had developed a neoplasm (females, 4.0%; males, 6.6%). By age 50 years, 19.3% (95% CI, 8.4% to 29.0%) of nonprobands had developed a neoplasm (females, 26.5%; males, 10.2%). After age 10 years, female risk was elevated compared with male risk. Standardized cancer incidence ratio analysis of 102 nonproband DICER1 carriers, which represented 3,344 person-years of observation, showed significant cancer excesses overall, particularly of gynecologic and thyroid cancers., Conclusion: This work provides the first quantitative analysis of site-specific neoplasm risk and excess malignancy risk in 102 systematically characterized nonproband DICER1 carriers. Our findings inform DICER1 syndrome phenotype, natural history, and genetic counseling.

Nasal chondromesenchymal hamartoma (NCMH) is a rare nasal tumor that typically presents in young children. We previously reported on NCMH occurrence in children with pleuropulmonary blastoma (PPB), a rare pulmonary dysembryonic sarcoma that is the hallmark neoplasm in the PPB-associated DICER1 tumor predisposition disorder. Original pathologic materials from individuals with a PPB, PPB-associated tumor and/or a DICER1 mutation were centrally reviewed by the International PPB Registry. Paraffin-embedded NCMH tumor tissue was available in three cases. Laser-capture microdissection was used to isolate mesenchymal spindle cells and cartilage in one case for Sanger sequencing of DICER1. Nine patients (5F/4M) had PPB and NCMH. NCMH was diagnosed at a median age of 10 years (range 6-21 years). NCMH developed 4.5-13 years after PPB. Presenting NCMH symptoms included chronic sinusitis and nasal congestion. Five patients had bilateral tumors. Local NCMH recurrences required several surgical resections in two patients, but all nine patients were alive at 0-16 years of follow-up. Pathogenic germline DICER1 mutations were found in 6/8 NCMH patients tested. In 2 of the patients with germline DICER1 mutations, somatic DICER1 missense mutations were also identified in their NCMH (E1813D; n = 2). Three additional PPB patients developed other nasal lesions seen in the general population (a Schneiderian papilloma, chronic sinusitis with cysts, and allergic nasal polyps with eosinophils). Two of these patients had germline DICER1 mutations. Pathogenic germline and somatic mutations of DICER1 in NCMH establishes that the genetic etiology of NCMH is similar to PPB, despite the disparate biological potential of these neoplasms.