A Si̇ngle-Center 22-Year Experi̇Ence Wi̇Th Germ Cell and Gonadal Tumors

Germ cell tumors (GCTs) constitute 2–3% of pediatric tumors. The overall survival rate for children and adolescents with GCT exceeds 80%. This study aims to review the clinical features, management, and outcomes of GCT in a single-center patient group. The clinical and pathological features and survival outcomes of 110 children treated for GCT at our hospital between 2002 and 2024 were analyzed. Of the patients, 76 were female, and 34 were male. Gonadal tumors were present in 73 (66%) patients (22 testicular, 51 ovarian), and extragonadal tumors were found in 37 (34%) patients. Histologically, the most common types were teratomas (30 mature, 21 immature), followed by yolk sac tumors (n = 25), mixed GCTs (n = 13), germinomas (n = 12), sex cord stromal tumors (n = 6), embryonal carcinoma (n = 1), choriocarcinoma (n = 1), and gonadoblastoma (n = 1). Thirty-one patients diagnosed with mature teratoma and gonadoblastoma were excluded from staging and survival assessments because they were benign tumors. During a median follow-up period of 25 months (0.3–264 months), the 5-year overall survival rate was 89.7%, and the event-free survival rate was 85.2%.