Environmental Pollution and Risk of Childhood Cancer: A Scoping Review of Evidence from the Last

PAPER manual International Journal of Molecular Sciences 2024 Review Effect: mixed Evidence: Low

Read original paper → DOI: 10.3390/ijms25063284 Evidence Lab

Abstract

Environmental Pollution and Risk of Childhood Cancer: A Scoping Review of Evidence from the Last Decade Navarrete-Meneses MdP, Salas-Labadía C, Gómez-Chávez F, Pérez-Vera P. Environmental Pollution and Risk of Childhood Cancer: A Scoping Review of Evidence from the Last Decade. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2024; 25(6):3284. doi: 10.3390/ijms25063284. Abstract The long-term effects of environmental pollution have been of concern as several pollutants are carcinogenic, potentially inducing a variety of cancers, including childhood cancer, which is a leading cause of death around the world and, thus, is a public health issue. The present scoping review aimed to update and summarize the available literature to detect specific environmental pollutants and their association with certain types of childhood cancer. Studies published from 2013 to 2023 regarding environmental pollution and childhood cancer were retrieved from the PubMed database. A total of 174 studies were eligible for this review and were analyzed. Our search strategy brought up most of the articles that evaluated air pollution (29%) and pesticides (28%). Indoor exposure to chemicals (11%), alcohol and tobacco use during pregnancy (16%), electromagnetic fields (12%), and radon (4%) were the subjects of less research. We found a particularly high percentage of positive associations between prenatal and postnatal exposure to indoor (84%) and outdoor (79%) air pollution, as well as to pesticides (82%), and childhood cancer. Positive associations were found between leukemia and pesticides and air pollution (33% and 27%); CNS tumors and neuroblastoma and pesticides (53% and 43%); and Wilms tumor and other rare cancers were found in association with air pollution (50%). Indoor air pollution was mostly reported in studies assessing several types of cancer (26%). Further studies are needed to investigate the mechanisms underlying the potential associations between indoor/outdoor air pollution and pesticide exposure with childhood cancer risk as more preventable measures could be taken. Open access paper: mdpi.com

AI evidence extraction

At a glance

Study type

Review

Effect direction

mixed

Population

children (childhood cancer); includes prenatal and postnatal exposures

Sample size

174

Exposure

environmental pollution (includes electromagnetic fields among other pollutants) · studies published 2013–2023

Evidence strength

Low

Confidence: 66% · Peer-reviewed: yes

Main findings

This scoping review (174 eligible studies, 2013–2023) summarized evidence on environmental pollutants and childhood cancer. The authors report a high percentage of positive associations for prenatal/postnatal exposure to indoor and outdoor air pollution and to pesticides with childhood cancer; electromagnetic fields were a less-studied exposure category (12% of included articles).

Outcomes measured

childhood cancer (overall)
leukemia
CNS tumors
neuroblastoma
Wilms tumor
other rare cancers

Limitations

Scoping review design (no quantitative synthesis reported in abstract)
Search described as PubMed-only in abstract
Electromagnetic fields were a smaller portion of the included literature and no EMF-specific results are detailed in the abstract

View raw extracted JSON

{
    "study_type": "review",
    "exposure": {
        "band": null,
        "source": "environmental pollution (includes electromagnetic fields among other pollutants)",
        "frequency_mhz": null,
        "sar_wkg": null,
        "duration": "studies published 2013–2023"
    },
    "population": "children (childhood cancer); includes prenatal and postnatal exposures",
    "sample_size": 174,
    "outcomes": [
        "childhood cancer (overall)",
        "leukemia",
        "CNS tumors",
        "neuroblastoma",
        "Wilms tumor",
        "other rare cancers"
    ],
    "main_findings": "This scoping review (174 eligible studies, 2013–2023) summarized evidence on environmental pollutants and childhood cancer. The authors report a high percentage of positive associations for prenatal/postnatal exposure to indoor and outdoor air pollution and to pesticides with childhood cancer; electromagnetic fields were a less-studied exposure category (12% of included articles).",
    "effect_direction": "mixed",
    "limitations": [
        "Scoping review design (no quantitative synthesis reported in abstract)",
        "Search described as PubMed-only in abstract",
        "Electromagnetic fields were a smaller portion of the included literature and no EMF-specific results are detailed in the abstract"
    ],
    "evidence_strength": "low",
    "confidence": 0.66000000000000003108624468950438313186168670654296875,
    "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
    "keywords": [
        "scoping review",
        "environmental pollution",
        "childhood cancer",
        "air pollution",
        "pesticides",
        "indoor exposure",
        "prenatal exposure",
        "postnatal exposure",
        "electromagnetic fields",
        "radon"
    ],
    "suggested_hubs": []
}

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AI-extracted fields are generated from the abstract/metadata and may be incomplete or incorrect. This content is for informational purposes only and is not medical advice.

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