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. 2017 Mar 1;140(5):1000-1008.
doi: 10.1002/ijc.30487. Epub 2016 Nov 30.

Trends in childhood leukemia incidence over two decades from 1992 to 2013

Jessica L Barrington-Trimis  1 , Myles Cockburn  1 , Catherine Metayer  2 , W James Gauderman  1 , Joseph Wiemels  3 , Roberta McKean-Cowdin  1
Affiliations

Trends in childhood leukemia incidence over two decades from 1992 to 2013

Jessica L Barrington-Trimis et al. Int J Cancer. .

Abstract

Incidence rates of childhood leukemia in the United States have steadily increased over the last several decades, but only recently have disparities in the increase in incidence been recognized. In the current analysis, Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) data were used to evaluate recent trends in the incidence of childhood leukemia diagnosed at age 0-19 years from 1992 to 2013, overall and by age, race/ethnicity, gender and histologic subtype. Hispanic White children were more likely than non-Hispanic White, non-Hispanic Black or non-Hispanic Asian children to be diagnosed with acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) from 2009 to 2013. From 1992 to 2013, a significant increase in ALL incidence was observed for Hispanic White children [annual percent change (APC)Hispanic = 1.08, 95% CI: 0.59, 1.58]; no significant increase was observed for non-Hispanic White, Black or Asian children. ALL incidence increased by about 3% per year from 1992 to 2013 for Hispanic White children diagnosed from 15 to 19 years (APC = 2.67; 95% CI: 0.88, 4.49) and by 2% for those 10-14 years (APC = 2.09; 95% CI: 0.57, 3.63), while no significant increases in incidence were observed in non-Hispanic White, Black, or Asian children of the same age. Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) incidence increased among non-Hispanic White children under 1 year at diagnosis, and among Hispanic White children diagnosed at age 1-4. The increase in incidence rates of childhood ALL appears to be driven by rising rates in older Hispanic children (10-14, and 15-19 years). Future studies are needed to evaluate reasons for the increase in ALL among older Hispanic children.

Keywords: SEER; childhood leukemia; incidence; trends.

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Conflict of interest statement

DISCLOSURE OF CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

We declare no conflicts of interest nor financial disclosures for any authors.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Age-Adjusted Incidence Rates of Childhood Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia by Race and Ethnicity, SEER 13, 1992–2013
Figure 2
Figure 2
Age-Specific Incidence Rates of Childhood Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia (ALL) and Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) among a) Hispanic White, b) Non-Hispanic White, c) Non-Hispanic Black, and d) Non-Hispanic Asian children, SEER 18, 2009–2013
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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