Electromagnetic field exposures and childhood cancers in New Zealand.
OBJECTIVE
To assess childhood cancer risks for electromagnetic field (EMF) exposures.


METHODS
A case-control study was conducted in New Zealand. Cases (aged from zero to 14 years) were ascertained from national databases including the New Zealand Cancer Registry; 303 took part (participation rate, 88 percent). The 303 age- and gender-matched controls were selected randomly from birth records (participation, 69 percent). Mothers were interviewed about appliance exposures (all cases and controls), and 24-hour residential measurements of EMFs were made (leukemia cases and matched controls).


RESULTS
For the various appliance exposures, there were some odds ratios (OR) above 1.0 and others below 1.0. For electric blanket use by the child before diagnosis, the adjusted ORs were: leukemia, 2.2 (95 percent confidence interval [CI] = 0.7-6.4); central nervous system cancers, ORs = 1.6 (CI = 0.4-7.1); and other solid cancers, OR = 2.4 (CI = 1.0-6.1). Leukemia risk was increased for the highest category of the mean measured bedroom magnetic field (> or = 0.2microT cf < 0.1 microT), with an adjusted OR of 15.5 (CI = 1.1-224). A gradient in OR with exposure was not shown (middle category: OR 1.4, CI = 0.3-7.6), and there was no association with exposure categorized into thirds based on controls' exposure. The adjusted OR for leukemia in relation to the measured daytime room magnetic field (> or = 0.2 microT cf < 0.1 microT) was 5.2 (CI = 0.9-30.8).


CONCLUSIONS
This was a small study and multiple comparisons were made. The positive findings thus should be interpreted cautiously.
Department of Preventive and Social Medicine, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand.
J D
JD
Dockerty
J M
JM
Elwood
D C
DC
Skegg
G P
GP
Herbison
D000293:Adolescent; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004574:Electromagnetic Fields / Q000009:adverse effects*; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007938:Leukemia / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D008297:Male; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D009520:New Zealand / Q000453:epidemiology; D016017:Odds Ratio; D012042:Registries / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012307:Risk Factors