Treatment of Transient Peripheral Neuropathy During Chimeric 14.18 Antibody Therapy in Children With Neuroblastoma: A Case Series

Children with high-risk neuroblastoma are currently treated with a chimeric monoclonal antibody against GD2 ganglioside (chimeric 14.18). The treatment improves survival but causes transient neuropathic pain-like syndrome. We retrospectively studied 16 children with neuroblastoma receiving GD2 therapy. To manage pain, all patients received morphine via nurse-controlled analgesia or patient-controlled analgesia. Mean daily pain scores ranged from 0 to 5 and all children had a 0 pain score upon discharge. No major side effects were noted, suggesting morphine via nurse-controlled analgesia/patient-controlled analgesia is effective in controlling transient neuropathic pain in children receiving GD2 antibody therapy.