ON THIS PAGE: You will find out more about what factors increase the chance of this type of cancer. To see other pages in this guide, use the colored boxes on the right side of your screen, or click “Next” at the bottom.

A risk factor is anything that increases a person’s chance of developing cancer. Although risk factors often influence the development of cancer, most do not directly cause cancer. Some people with several risk factors never develop cancer, while others with no known risk factors do.

Doctors and researchers don’t know what causes most childhood cancers. In most cases of rhabdomyosarcoma, there are no clear risk factors. However, it has been shown that children who have the following rare, inherited conditions have a higher risk of developing rhabdomyosarcoma:

• Li-Fraumeni syndrome [2]
• Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome [3]
• Neurofibromatosis [4]
• Costello syndrome
• Cardio-facio-cutaneous syndrome

A few cases of rhabdomyosarcoma have been associated with some congenital anomalies (abnormalities present at birth). Parental use of cocaine and marijuana before a child’s birth may increase a child’s risk of developing rhabdomyosarcoma.

Choose “Next” (below, right) to continue reading this guide to learn about what symptoms this type of cancer can cause. Or, use the colored boxes located on the right side of your screen to visit any section.