Skip Navigation
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences

Use this QR code to view the newest version of this document
Use this QR code to view the newest version of this document

Your Environment. Your Health.

Publication Detail

Title: In Utero and Early-Life Exposure to Ambient Air Toxics and Childhood Brain Tumors: A Population-Based Case-Control Study in California, USA.

Authors: von Ehrenstein, Ondine S; Heck, Julia E; Park, Andrew S; Cockburn, Myles; Escobedo, Loraine; Ritz, Beate

Published In Environ Health Perspect, (2016 Jul)

Abstract: Little is known about the influence of environmental factors on the etiology of childhood brain tumors.We examined risks for brain tumors in children after prenatal and infant exposure to monitored ambient air toxics.We ascertained all cases of medulloblastoma, central nervous system primitive neuroectodermal tumor (PNET), and astrocytoma before 6 years of age diagnosed in 1990-2007 from the California Cancer Registry and selected controls randomly from birth rolls matched by birth year. Exposures to air toxics during pregnancy/infancy for 43 PNET, 34 medulloblastoma, and 106 astrocytoma cases and 30,569 controls living within 5 mi of a monitor were determined. With factor analysis we assessed the correlational structures of 26 probable carcinogenic toxics, and estimated odds ratios by brain tumor type in logistic regression models.PNETs (≤ 38 cases) were positively associated with interquartile range (IQR) increases in prenatal exposure to acetaldehyde [odds ratio (OR) = 2.30; 95% CI: 1.44, 3.67], 1,3-butadiene (OR = 2.23; 95% CI: 1.28, 3.88), benzene, and toluene; and with IQR increases in exposure during the first year of life to ortho-dichlorobenzene (OR = 3.27; 95% CI: 1.17, 9.14), 1,3-butadiene (OR = 3.15; 95% CI: 1.57, 6.32), and benzene. All exposures except ortho-dichlorobenzene loaded on the same factor. Medulloblastoma (≤ 30 cases) was associated with prenatal exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs combined: OR = 1.44; 95% CI: 1.15, 1.80). Exposures to lead and some PAHs during the first year of life were positively associated with astrocytoma, but the confidence intervals included the null value (e.g., for lead, OR = 1.40; 95% CI: 0.97, 2.03).Our data suggest that in utero and infancy exposures to air toxics generated by industrial and road traffic sources may increase the risk of PNET and medulloblastoma, with limited support for increased risks for astrocytoma in children up to age 6.von Ehrenstein OS, Heck JE, Park AS, Cockburn M, Escobedo L, Ritz B. 2016. In Utero and early-life exposure to ambient air toxics and childhood brain tumors: a population-based case-control study in California, USA. Environ Health Perspect 124:1093-1099; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/ehp.1408582.

PubMed ID: 26505805 Exiting the NIEHS site

MeSH Terms: No MeSH terms associated with this publication

Back
to Top