Study links infection, childhood cancers

NEWCASTLE, England, Dec. 13 (UPI) -- A British study finds that infections may be responsible for many childhood cancers.

Dr. Richard McNally of the University of Newcastle analyzed the pattern of young children diagnosed with cancer during a 40-year period.

McNally and his colleagues found that two types of cancer, leukemia and brain tumors, occurred in clusters.

The clusters were both chronological and spatial, McNally said, suggesting a link with outbreaks of infection. He said that cancers caused by environmental factors tended to occur in clusters over a long period of time.

The data suggest that only a small percentage of children who get an infection linked to cancer will get the more serious disease, usually those with an inherited predisposition.

The study was published in the European Journal of Cancer.