title: Childhood leukaemia risks: from unexplained findings near nuclear installations to recommendations for future research.
abstract: Recent findings related to childhood leukaemia incidence near nuclear installations have raised questions which can be answered neither by current knowledge on radiation risk nor by other established risk factors. In 2012, a workshop was organised on this topic with two objectives: (a) review of results and discussion of methodological limitations of studies near nuclear installations; (b) identification of directions for future research into the causes and pathogenesis of childhood leukaemia. The workshop gathered 42 participants from different disciplines, extending widely outside of the radiation protection field. Regarding the proximity of nuclear installations, the need for continuous surveillance of childhood leukaemia incidence was highlighted, including a better characterisation of the local population. The creation of collaborative working groups was recommended for consistency in methodologies and the possibility of combining data for future analyses. Regarding the causes of childhood leukaemia, major fields of research were discussed (environmental risk factors, genetics, infections, immunity, stem cells, experimental research). The need for multidisciplinary collaboration in developing research activities was underlined, including the prevalence of potential predisposition markers and investigating further the infectious aetiology hypothesis. Animal studies and genetic/epigenetic approaches appear of great interest. Routes for future research were pointed out.
authors.affiliation: Institut de Radioprotection et de Sûreté Nucléaire (IRSN), BP 17, F-92262 Fontenay-aux-Roses Cedex, France.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Laurier
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Grosche
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Auvinen
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Clavel
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cobaleda
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dehos
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hornhardt
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jacob
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kaatsch
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Kosti
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kuehni
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Lightfoot
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Spycher
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Van Nieuwenhuyse
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Wakeford
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ziegelberger
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D035843:Biomedical Research; D002648:Child; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D017408:Guidelines as Topic; D006801:Humans; D007938:Leukemia / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D055848:Nuclear Power Plants; D012307:Risk Factors