Alcohol in pregnancy linked to childhood leukemia

Monday May 10th, 2010

New research has linked drinking alcohol in pregnancy with an increased risk of children developing blood cancer.

The condition is very rare among children, but Dr Julie Ross of the University of Minnesota, USA, and colleagues found that alcohol raised the risk by 56 per cent.

In the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, they explain that childhood leukaemia is probably caused by an interaction between genetic and environmental factors.

They investigated the possible role of maternal alcohol consumption during pregnancy by analysing the results of 21 studies.

"Alcohol intake during pregnancy (yes versus no) was statistically significantly associated with childhood acute myeloid leukaemia," they report. The risk was raised overall by 56 per cent for this type of leukaemia, and there was no link with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.

However, the individual studies varied widely in their methods and findings. They authors conclude: "The results of case-control studies indicate that maternal alcohol consumption during pregnancy is associated with a significantly increased risk of acute myeloid leukemia in young children."

Dr Ross commented: "It's quite rare, so we want to be careful about worrying parents too much," but she added that the findings support the recommendation to avoid alcohol during pregnancy.

"Despite the current recommendation that pregnant women should not drink alcohol during pregnancy, alcohol consumption during pregnancy is 12 per cent in the US, 30 per cent in Sweden, 52 per cent in France, 59 per cent in Australia and 60 per cent in Russia."

Latino-Martel, P. et al. Maternal Alcohol Consumption during Pregnancy and Risk of Childhood Leukemia: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, Vol. 19, May 2010, pp. 1238-60.

Tags: Australia | Cancer | Child Health | Childbirth and Pregnancy | Drug and Alcohol Abuse | Europe | North America

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