Leukaemia in Childhood and Young Adult Life

Childhood leukaemia in Scotland, 1939-68

Data from death certificates of 978 children who died from leukaemia in Scotland before their fifteenth birthday during 1939–68 were analysed. The main findings were the same as those reported for childhood leukaemia in England and Wales and the United States and were as follows: (1) Leukaemia mortality {principally lymphatic leukaemia) increased during the 1940's and 1950's with a slight decline during the 1960's; and (2) Mortality from lymphatic leukaemia rose to a peak at 3 to 4 years of age while mortality from myeloid and monocytic leukaemia was evenly distributed throughout the first 14 years of life.

Leukaemia mortality in Scotland was lower than for the majority of countries. During the 1950's the rate was the fifth lowest for males (35 per million) and seventh lowest for females (26 per million) of 25 countries.

There was no evidence of an urban-rural gradient or of seasonal variation of onset or mortality or of clustering of cases of leukaemia.

Regional variations in leukaemia mortality in Scotland were not significant in contrast to a significant regional variation in leukaemia mortality for adults in Scotland observed by Court Brown et al. (1960).

Leukemia mortality: downturn rates in the United States

A decline, the first ever observed, has recently occurred in leukemia mortality rates for the white population of the United States between the ages of 1 and 74. Possible explanations include diminished exposure to medical x-rays following the release in the United States and Great Britain in 1956 of widely publicized reports on the biologic effects of ionizing radiation.

Epidemiology of leukaemia. Background for future studies

The author of this paper suggests that the very considerable geographical variations in leukaemia mortality warrant continued investigation. However, studies attempting to relate leukaemia mortality to variation in levels of natural radioactivity might to advantage be confined, for the moment, to areas in which differences in natural radioactivity levels are substantial. The investigation of certain groups of patients exposed to ionizing radiation from medical sources is also important to an understanding of the etiology of leukaemia.There are other groups in which the leukaemia experience is unusual and which might form the basis for further investigation. These include mongolian idiots and their relatives, children aged 3-4 years, children in certain maternal age and parity groups, certain segments of the population of Israel, and persons occupationally exposed to benzol.