Exposure to pesticides and risk of childhood cancer: a meta-analysis of recent epidemiological studies

Abstract

Despite some limitations in this study, the incidence of childhood cancer does appear to be associated with parental exposure during the prenatal period.

Increased cancer burden among pesticide applicators and others due to pesticide exposure

“…133 Early life exposures to pesticides are suspected to be responsible for some of these childhood leukemias. A number of recent systematic reviews of the etiological literature [134][135][136][137] reached a somewhat similar conclusion (ie, the current literature is limited). Chief among these limitations are that exposure measures relying on substitutes for information about parental pesticide use itself such as in farm-related activities or crops produced has proven to be inadequate; case-control studies tended to suffer from at least some case-recall bias; cohort studies have been too small to generate a sufficient number of exposed cases, thereby mitigating firm etiological conclusions; many available studies (both case-control and cohort) were too small to reliably evaluate leukemia subtypes and all were too small to identify specific pesticides that might be linked to childhood leukemia; and controlling for potentially confounding factors is difficult when so little is known about the etiology of childhood leukemia generally.…”

“…Chief among these limitations are that exposure measures relying on substitutes for information about parental pesticide use itself such as in farm-related activities or crops produced has proven to be inadequate; case-control studies tended to suffer from at least some case-recall bias; cohort studies have been too small to generate a sufficient number of exposed cases, thereby mitigating firm etiological conclusions; many available studies (both case-control and cohort) were too small to reliably evaluate leukemia subtypes and all were too small to identify specific pesticides that might be linked to childhood leukemia; and controlling for potentially confounding factors is difficult when so little is known about the etiology of childhood leukemia generally. Nonetheless, a number of important observations have been made in meta-analyses associated with these reviews (ie, an excess risk of overall leukemia is observed with maternal pesticide exposure from home and garden use 135 or maternal occupational exposure but not with paternal occupational pesticide exposure). 136,137 Meta-analyses of childhood leukemia were elevated for prenatal maternal occupational exposure to both insecticides and herbicides.…”

“…136 While elevated risks of childhood leukemia were also observed in meta-analyses of children living in homes where professional pesticide applications were done before pregnancy, during pregnancy, and during the first 3 years of the child's life, 134 Vinson et al observed the maternal-associated leukemia risks to be particularly high for exposures that took place prior to birth. 135 While data are limited, it seems both acute lymphocytic leukemia and acute myeloid leukemia in children may be linked to pesticide exposure. 136 Excess childhood leukemia risks did not appear to be related to the proximity of a home to a farm, 137 nor to carpet-tested levels of chlordane, DDT, DDE, methoxychlor, or pentachlorophenol.…”

Altered Hematological and Biochemical Parameters in Schoolchildren Living in an Agricultural Community of Merida State, Venezuela

“…Exposure to atmospheric OP and pyrethroid pesticides through inhalation was associated with respiratory symptoms consistent with childhood asthma [7,8]. Pesticide exposure has been implicated as a possible contributing factor in the pathogenesis of several types of childhood cancer, including those of lymphatic and hematopoietic systems, soft tissue sarcoma, brain and stomach cancer [9][10][11][12]. In children, cancer is the number one cause of death by disease; in fact, it is responsible for more deaths than all other diseases combined [13].…”

The EPHX1 rs1051740 Polymorphism Is Associated with Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in a Korean Population

“…Childhood ALL is caused by multiple factors, including genetic disorders, exposure to radiation, and immune dysfunction [2] [3]. Environmental factors, such as pesticides, household chemical exposure, and parental smoking and alcohol use, have also been associated with childhood cancers, including childhood ALL [3]- [5]. These factors are detoxified by drug-metabolizing enzymes, through phase I and II metabolism.…”