[The effect of neonatal BCG vaccination on the incidence of leukemia (author's transl)].

Data from several publications were analyzed with respect to the possible non-specific influence of BCG vaccinations on leukemia. Our own investigations in the five largest provinces of Austria showed that there was an inverse correlation between leukemia mortality and BCG vaccination of the newborn. From this data a protection rate of 0.88 for prevention of leukemia deaths could be calculated for the first five years of life. The number of positive tuberculin reactions was significantly lower in leukemic infants than in normal ones. This finding was completely in accordance with the probability of positive tuberculin reactions as calculated from the protection rate.