Parental occupational exposure and the risk of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in offspring in Israel.

OBJECTIVE

Parental employment in occupations that have potential exposures to organic solvents or pesticides could be associated with the risk of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in their offspring.

METHODS

We explored this hypothesis by studying the association with respect to exposure time windows. Our case-control study included 224 children, 112 diagnosed with ALL and 112 matched controls.

RESULTS

A significantly higher odds ratio (OR) was found between childhood ALL and reported parental occupational exposures. Analysis of exposures of both parents by exposure time windows revealed significant OR during the preconception and postnatal periods separately.

CONCLUSIONS

The results provide support to the association between parental occupational exposures and ALL in their children. These results should be interpreted cautiously because of the small numbers, biases characterizing case-control studies, and the use of hospital-based controls.