Leukemia is the most common type of cancer in children and adolescents. Little is known about how the disease is caused, but previous studies have shown a link between leukemia and maternal infections. A new study of Danish children sheds more light on this topic.
Leukemias are a group of cancers that affect blood cells and prevent them from developing into certain types of cells. Most childhood leukemias are acute, rapidly progressing, and can be fatal if not treated.
Leukemia is usually part of the body’s immune system and affects the production of white blood cells that fight infections and other diseases. The most common type of childhood leukemia is acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), which accounts for 75% of leukemia cases in children and adolescents. ALL causes the bone marrow to overproduce immature white blood cells called lymphoblasts. Children with ALL are prone to anemia and recurrent infections, and are prone to bleeding and bruising.
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) affects myeloblasts, immature versions of white blood cells, and myeloid cells responsible for the production of red blood cells and platelets. In AML, myeloblasts are produced in excess, congregate in the bone marrow, and normal blood cell production ceases. This can lead to anemia, bleeding and/or bruising. Although it usually occurs in adults, AML accounts for 17% of cases in children and adolescents.
Although the signs and symptoms of ALL and AML are fairly similar, the diagnosis and treatment of each are different.
A 2019 review of previously published studies found that influenza, rubella (German measles), and chickenpox (chickenpox) infections during pregnancy were associated with an increased risk of childhood leukemia. rice field. However, we found that some of these studies contained bias.
With these studies in mind, Danish and Swedish researchers undertook a long-term study of over 2.2 million Danish children to confirm the occurrence of childhood leukemia in the setting of maternal infection during pregnancy. bottom. Researchers looked at infections based on where they originated in the body, including the respiratory tract, urinary tract, reproductive tract, and digestive system.
After adjusting for variables that may have influenced the data, the researchers found that maternal infections during pregnancy increased the risk of childhood leukemia by 35%. Looking at specific sites of infection, the data revealed that urinary tract and genital infections were associated with an increased risk of childhood leukemia by 142% and 65%, respectively. was consistent with the Swedish study of
ALL and AML are believed to be caused by various mechanisms that occur prenatally. However, the results of the current study suggest that maternal infection is a common factor in both types of illness.
Maternal infections were not associated with other types of childhood cancer, such as brain tumors or cancers of the lymphatic system (lymphoma).
The researchers noted that while the strengths of the large sample size and high quality of the data were, the fact that the data were derived from hospital diagnoses suggests that mild or undiagnosed infections were not captured by the study. Furthermore, because no data were available on the treatment mothers received for the infection, the researchers wanted to examine whether treatment affected the risk of childhood leukemia. I couldn’t.
Despite these limitations, the research is informative. Since little is known about the causes of childhood leukemia, the indication that maternal infection contributes to increased risk of developing the disease will guide future research, improve our understanding of the disease, and potentially lead to the development of measures to prevent
This research JAMA network open.
Source: JAMA network via EurekAlert!
