Docs on Call
Childhood Cancer Survival and Life After Treatment
Clip: 5/14/2026 | 1m 13sVideo has Closed Captions
Cancer specialists discuss improving cure rates and childhood cancer survivorship.
Dr. Brinda Mehta and Dr. Robert McWilliams discuss major gains in treating childhood cancers, including high cure rates for some leukemias and lymphomas. They also explain why survivorship care remains important, as adults who were treated for cancer as children may face later effects of treatment or increased risks that require ongoing monitoring.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
Docs on Call is a local public television program presented by WTVP
Docs on Call
Childhood Cancer Survival and Life After Treatment
Clip: 5/14/2026 | 1m 13sVideo has Closed Captions
Dr. Brinda Mehta and Dr. Robert McWilliams discuss major gains in treating childhood cancers, including high cure rates for some leukemias and lymphomas. They also explain why survivorship care remains important, as adults who were treated for cancer as children may face later effects of treatment or increased risks that require ongoing monitoring.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
Where to Watch Docs on Call
Docs on Call is available to stream on pbs.org and the PBS app.
Providing Support for PBS.org
Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorshipthe mortality rates are going in the right direction, and especially for leukemia and Hodgkin lymphoma, and the cure rates are in the 80s and 90s, 90%.
So a lot of these common cancers, great success has been made over the years from dedicated scientists and researchers where we're shooting basically for cure for a lot of these common malignancies.
Now, for a lot of sarcomas, more aggressive brain tumors, it is lower, but again, the overall mortality rates and prognosis is far superior and much better these days.
Yeah.
- I would add as a takeaway from that, even though we're curing a lot of these patients, their life expectancy is still lower than the general population.
And some of that's 'cause there might be an increased risk for other cancers, could be delayed effects of treatment.
And so that's where the Cancer Institute and our Children's hospital colleagues can work together to say, as these childhood cancer survivors become adults, what particular needs do they have?
What survivorship requirements do they have?
Do we need additional monitoring for certain complications?
Advanced Pediatric Cancer Care Close to Home
Video has Closed Captions
Specialists explain how Central Illinois families can access pediatric cancer care nearby. (1m 35s)
Why Childhood Cancer Is Different
Video has Closed Captions
A specialist explains why childhood cancers differ from cancers found in adults. (1m 9s)
Providing Support for PBS.org
Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorship
- Science and Nature

Miles O'Brien travels the world searching for solutions to today’s most urgent challenges.
New Episode
New Episode







Recently Added
Support for PBS provided by:
Docs on Call is a local public television program presented by WTVP


