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Dec. 12, 2005, 8:27AM
Study suggests infections can cause childhood cancer
Associated Press
LONDON - Common infections that affect mothers and babies may trigger certain types of childhood cancers, researchers said today.
They found that leukemia and brain tumours, leading cancers in children, occurred in clusters which suggests that outbreaks of infections are a contributing cause of the disease.
"We found that place of birth was particularly significant, which suggests that an infection in the mother while she is carrying her baby, or in a child's early years, could be a trigger factor for the cancer," said Dr Richard McNally, of the University of Newcastle upon Tyne in northern England.
"These could be minor, common illnesses ... such a cold, mild flu or a respiratory infection," he added in a statement.
McNally and a team of researchers from England and Scotland, who reported the findings in the European Journal of Cancer, said the results could improve understanding about how cancer develops and may lead to better prevention and treatment.
Although cancer in children is rare, rates of the disease in youngsters in Europe have increased over the past three decades. Survival rates however have improved. Five-year survival rates are about 75 percent in western Europe and 63 percent in eastern Europe.
Leukemia is the most common childhood cancer, accounting for nearly one-third of all cases. Most of the rise has been in children aged 1 to 4.
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