|  | Epidemiology is the study of the distribution and causes (aetiology) of disease. The distribution of the disease includes how many people are diagnosed with it each year, who are they and where they live. When this data is collected it can help to show us who is most at risk of developing a given disease, whether there are any inherited risk factors and what, if any, environmental exposures can increase the risk of developing the disease.
The Leukaemia Research Epidemiology and Genetics Unit at University of York is dedicated to researching who gets cancers of the blood and why. Visit the website to find out more www.egu.york.ac.uk
Sometimes several cases of leukaemia appear to occur in a small geographical area over a relatively short time span. These are called leukaemia clusters. In 1994 the Royal Society of Edinburgh held a Symposium on Leukaemia Clusters, the report of this meeting is made available by kind permission of the Royal Society.
 | Aetiology |
The cause of most people’s blood cancer is unknown. We do know that the vast majority of leukaemia, lymphoma, myeloma and related conditions are not inherited.
There are many suggested causes under investigation, some of the ones that receive a lot of media attention are:
There have been reports suggesting that mobile phones (either the handsets or the phone masts) may increase the risk of leukaemia or related conditions.
The British Medical Association, in 2001, published Mobile Phones and Health, an interim report
John Moulder, Professor of Radiation Oncology at Medical College of Wisconsin, has produced a report called Mobile Phone Base Stations and Human Health. Although there are differences between the systems used in different countries Professor Moulder discusses these and offers references to the original literature.
There have been similar concerns about power lines. Professor Moulder has also answered some frequently asked questions about power lines and cancer. You can find this at Power line FAQs.
| Vitamin K and Childhood Leukaemia |
In the early 1990s Dr Jean Golding of Bristol published two reports suggesting that intramuscular vitamin K (given to prevent bleeding problems in newborns) might increase the risk of childhood leukaemia. Although much evidence has been published on this topic, midwives and parents-to-be are often confused as to the facts.
A recent paper from the UK Childhood Cancer Study concluded that "there is no convincing evidence that neonatal vitamin K administration, irrespective of the route by which it is given, influences the risk of children developing leukaemia or any other cancer".
The great majority of those governments and professional bodies which have offered recommendations favour injections of vitamin K over oral administration. Given the results of the UK Childhood Cancer Study, and of evidence that oral vitamin K may be less effective at preventing intra-cranial bleeds, there are no obvious grounds to question this advice.
A further discussion on this can be found on this website at Vitamin K and Childhood Cancer
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In 1994 the Royal Society of Edinburgh held a Symposium on Leukaemia Clusters, the report of this meeting is made available by kind permission of the Royal Society.
| Is childhood leukaemia increasing? |
To read more about the epidemiology of childhood cancers click here.
| What causes childhood leukaemia? |
The UK Childhood Cancer Study Group has examined the largest number of possible environmental risk factors for childhood cancers. Visit www.ukccsg.org for more information.
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