| Household Pesticides and the Risk of Wilms Tumor Maureen A. Cooney,1 Julie L. Daniels,1 Julie A. Ross,2 Norman E. Breslow,3 Brad H. Pollock,4 and Andrew F. Olshan1 1Department of Epidemiology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; 2Department of Pediatrics, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; 3Department of Biostatistics, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA; 4Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas, USA Abstract
Background: Previous epidemiologic studies have suggested that exposure to pesticides in utero and during early childhood may increase the risk for development of childhood cancer, including Wilms tumor, a childhood kidney tumor. Objectives: In this analysis we evaluated the role of residential pesticide exposure in relation to the risk of Wilms tumor in children using data from a North American case–control study. Methods: The National Wilms Tumor Study Group (NWTSG) collected information on exposure to residential pesticides from the month before pregnancy through the diagnosis reference date using detailed phone interviews from 523 case mothers and 517 controls frequency matched on child's age and geographic region and identified by list-assisted random digit dialing. Pesticides were grouped according to type of pesticide and where they were used. Results: A slightly increased risk of Wilms tumor was found among children of mothers who reported insecticide use [odds ratio (OR) = 1.4, 95% confidence interval (CI) , 1.0–1.8 ; adjusted for education, income, and the matching variables]. Results from all other categories of pesticides were generally close to the null. Conclusions: This study is the largest case–control study of Wilms tumor to date. We were unable to confirm earlier reports of an increased risk for Wilms tumor among those exposed to residential pesticides during pregnancy through early childhood. Key words: childhood cancer, environment, pediatric pesticides, Wilms tumor. Environ Health Perspect 115: 134–137 (2007) . doi:10.1289/ehp.9298 available via http://dx.doi.org/ [Online 7 September 2006]
Address correspondence to A.F. Olshan, Department of Epidemiology, CB#7435, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7435 USA. Telephone: (919) 966-7424. Fax: (919) 966-2089. E-mail: andy_olshan@unc.edu This research was supported in part by National Cancer Institute grant R01CA75385 and by a grant from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (P30ES10126) . The authors declare they have no competing financial interests. Received 27 April 2006 ; accepted 7 September 2006.
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