 |
The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
|
The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Jerald Fagliano, MPH, PhD1, Michael Berry, MPH1, Barbara Goun, MPH, PhD1, Patricia Haltmeier1, Jonathan Savrin, MSPH1, Judith Klotz, DrPH2, Eddy A. Bresnitz, MD, MS3, and Wendy E. Kaye, PhD4. (1) Consumer and Environmental Health Services, NJ Department of Health and Senior Services, PO Box 369, Trenton, NJ 08625, 609-588-3120, jerald.fagliano@doh.state.nj.us, (2) Cancer Epidemiology Services, New Jersey Dept of Health and Senior Services, PO Box 369, Trenton, NJ 08625-0369, (3) Division of Epidemiology, Environmental and Occupational Health, New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services, 3635 Quakerbridge Road, Trenton, NJ 08625, (4) U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Division of Health Studies, Epidemiology and Surveillance Branch, 1600 Clifton Rd. NE, Mailstop E-31, Atlanta, GA 30333
In response to an elevated cluster of childhood cancers in Dover Township, New Jersey, a case-control epidemiological study of 40 children with leukemia or nervous system cancers diagnosed before age 20 between 1979-1996 and 159 matched controls was conducted. Previous environmental evaluations of two Superfund sites (Reich Farm and Ciba-Geigy) in the community identified potential exposure pathways, which became the study’s primary hypotheses, and include contamination of two of the ten public water supply well fields Parkway and Holly) and ambient air emissions from a chemical manufacturing facility (Ciba-Geigy). Information, including residential histories, was collected by structured questionnaire-based interviews. Computer modeling was conducted to estimate prenatal and postnatal exposures to contaminated community water and air pollution. A 5-fold increase in leukemia in females was found for high prenatal exposure to contaminated Parkway well field water (OR=5.0, 95% CI= 0.8, 31) with a 6-fold increase when maternal water consumption was simultaneously taken into account (OR=6.0; 95% CI= 1.1, 32). No association was found for postnatal exposure. Elevated odds ratios were also found for the high and medium prenatal exposure categories for Ciba-Geigy ambient air emissions in females with leukemia diagnosed prior to age five (high exposure OR=19, 95% CI=0.9, 400; medium exposure OR=5.2, 95% CI=0.5, 57). No consistent associations were found for leukemia in males or brain/central nervous system cancers in either sex with any of the primary hypotheses. Due to the relatively small number of study subjects, the analyses are sensitive to random fluctuations in numbers leading to uncertainty in these findings.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Cancer, Environmental Exposures
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.