title: Reliability of cancer family history reported by parents in a case-control study of childhood leukemia.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the reliability of family history of cancer reported by parents of children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and parents of healthy control children.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 301 parents were selected based on positive or negative family history of cancer at baseline, case-control status, and gender of the respondent (mother or father). Baseline responses were compared with responses at the second interview using the same questionnaire. Reliability was measured using proportion of overall agreement, Cohen's kappa, and Cronbach's alpha; a logistic regression model was also used to assess the role of the case-control status on overall agreement as the dependent variable.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The overall agreement between interviews was high and similar for cases (85 %) and controls (86 %); there were no consistent effects of respondent gender, age at first interview, or time elapsed between interviews on agreement measures. Agreement measures did not materially vary according to whether respondents were reporting about their mothers, fathers, or siblings.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The study showed very good reliability of reporting family history among young parents of children affected with leukemia and parents of healthy control children.
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Occupational Health, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, 1110 Avenue des Pins, Ouest, Montréal, QC H3A 1A, Canada. claire.infante-rivard@mcgill.ca
authors.forename: Claire
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Infante-Rivard
authors.forename: Federico
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Roncarolo
authors.forename: Kimberley
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Doucette
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008487:Medical History Taking / Q000592:standards*; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000378:metabolism; D010290:Parents; D054198:Precursor Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia-Lymphoma / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires