Epidemiological Analysis of Paediatric Tumours and Survival Outcomes at University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital, North Central Nigeria

Paediatric malignancies represent a growing proportion of cancer-related mortality in Nigerian children, and survival data from North Central tertiary centres are largely absent from published literature, creating a significant evidence gap. This study analyses the epidemiological distribution, histopathological spectrum, and survival outcomes of paediatric tumours managed at the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital, Kwara State. A retrospective cohort design is applied to histopathology and oncology records of patients aged 0 to 15 years diagnosed with malignant tumours between 2013 and 2022. Variables include tumour type, WHO histological classification, age at diagnosis, stage at presentation, treatment received, and five-year overall survival estimated using Kaplan-Meier survival analysis in SPSS. Predictors of survival are examined using the log-rank test and Cox proportional hazards regression. Available paediatric oncology literature from North Central Nigeria identifies Wilms tumour, Burkitt lymphoma, retinoblastoma, and acute lymphoblastic leukaemia as the predominant tumour types, with presentation at advanced stage associated with five-year survival below 30 percent. The WHO Classification of Tumours in Children and the COG staging systems guide tumour classification. Findings will support the institution in establishing a structured paediatric oncology registry and multidisciplinary tumour board. Keywords: paediatric tumours, survival analysis, Kaplan-Meier, North Central Nigeria, paediatric oncology.