ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: A case-control study was conducted with 183 histologically confirmed neuroblastoma cases aged 0-14 years diagnosed among residents of New York State, excluding New York City, between 1976 and 1987. Three hundred seventy-two controls were selected from the New York State live birth certificate registry and were matched to cases on year of birth. METHODS: Parental occupational exposures at the time of each child's birth were obtained from maternal telephone interviews, successfully completed for 85% of cases and 87% of controls. RESULTS: Odds ratios were significantly elevated for maternal occupation in the service (OR = 2.0, 95% CI = 1.0 4.1) and retail (OR = 2.0, 95% CI = 1.1-3.7) industries and paternal occupation in materials handling (OR = 3.8, 95% CI = 1.1-14.6). Odds ratios were also significantly elevated for maternal report of occupational exposure to acetone (OR = 3.1, 95% CI = 1.7-5.6), insecticides (OR = 2.3, 95% CI = 1.4-3.7), lead (OR = 4.7, 95% CI = 1.3-18.2) and petroleum (OR = 3.0, 95% CI = 1.5-6.1) and paternal exposure to creosote (OR = 2.1, 95% CI = 1.1-4.3), dioxin (OR = 6.9, 95% CI = 1.3-68.4), lead (OR = 2.4, 95% CI = 1.2-4.8), and petroleum (OR = 1.8, 95% CI = 1.1-2.8). CONCLUSIONS: Due to the uncertainty of the biologic plausibility of these associations and the possibility of alternative explanations, these results should be interpreted cautiously.
Subject(s)
Brain Neoplasms/etiology , Maternal Exposure/adverse effects , Neuroblastoma/etiology , Occupational Exposure/adverse effects , Paternal Exposure/adverse effects , Acetone/adverse effects , Adolescent , Brain Neoplasms/epidemiology , Case-Control Studies , Child , Child, Preschool , Female , Humans , Infant , Insecticides/adverse effects , Male , Neuroblastoma/epidemiology , Odds Ratio , Petroleum/adverse effects , Risk Assessment , Risk Factors , United States/epidemiologyABSTRACT
Differences in cancer patient profiles between cases seen at comprehensive cancer centers and those seen in the general population are seldom assessed by means of reliable and systematically collected data. This report compares the characteristics of patients treated at Roswell Park Memorial Institute in Buffalo with all reported patients diagnosed in the Western New York population. Data for this study were generated from the Roswell Park Tumor Registry and the Western New York Tumor Registry. The findings indicate that patients presenting for treatment at Roswell Park Memorial Institute, compared to the WNY cancer patient population, are more frequently diagnosed with rare tumors, are younger, and manifest later stage disease. These data may have implications for the planning and evaluation of cancer patient services at the community level.