From: Breastfeeding and the risk of childhood cancer: a systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis
First author, year, country | Data collection years | Design | No. of cases/controls1 | Age (years) | Source of cases | Source of controls | Cancer type | Breastfeeding categories (months) | Method of assessing breastfeeding | Variables matched or adjusted | NOS | Risk of bias |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Davis, 1988, USA [33] | 1976–1983 | PC-CS | 201/181 | 1.5–15 | Colorado Central Cancer Registry | Population | Leukemia (N = 63); brain tumors (N = 38); lymphoma (N = 26); STS (N = 15); other cancers (N = 59) | Never/≤ 6/> 6 (lymphoma); ≤ 6/> 6 (leukemia, brain tumors, STS) | Interview of parents | Matched: age (±3 years), sex, telephone exchange. Adjusted: none. | 7 | Moderate |
Magnani, 1988, Italy [34] | 1981–1984 | HC-CS | 182/307 | NA | The main pediatric hospital of Turin | Hospital patients | Leukemia (N = 163); NHL (N = 19) | Never/1–6/> 7 | Interview of parents | Matched: none. Adjusted: none. | 5 | Serious |
Van Duijn, 1988, Netherlands [35] | 1973–1979 | PC-CS | 492/480 | 1–15 | The national registry of the Dutch Childhood Leukemia Study Group | Population | ALL (N = 492) | Never/≤ 6/> 6 | Questionnaires mailed to parents | Matched: age (±3 years), sex. Adjusted: age, sex, birth order, social class, maternal education, and maternal factors (age, smoking, alcohol use in pregnancy). | 7 | Moderate |
Shu, 1995, China [36] | 1981–1991 | PC-CS | 241/241 | 1–15 | Shanghai Cancer Registry | Population | Lymphoma (N = 82); leukemia (N = 159) | Never/1–6/> 6 | Interview of parents | Matched: sex, year of birth. Adjusted: maternal age at birth, birthweight, maternal working status and occupational exposure to chemicals during infancy. | 8 | Moderate |
Shu, 1995, USA and Canada [17] | 1982–1989 | PC-CS | 105/639 | 0–15 | The Children’s Cancer Group (CCG), 1982–1989 | Population | Malignant germ cell tumors (N = 105) | Never/1–6/7–12/> 12 | Self-administered questionnaire to mother | Matched: none. Adjusted: age, gender, gestational age, number of livebirths, maternal education, and smoking during pregnancy. | 7 | Moderate |
Petridou, 1997, Greece [37] | 1993–1994 | HC-CS | 153/300 | 0–14 | A nationwide network of childhood hematologists/oncologists | Hospital patients | Leukemia (N = 153) | Ever vs. never | Interview of guardians | Matched: place of residence, gender and age. Adjusted: sex, age, place of residence, sociodemographic, lifestyle, environmental and biomedical variables. | 7 | Serious |
Schüz, 1999, Germany [38] | 1992–1997 | PC-CS | 1001/1001 | 0–14 | German Children’s Cancer Registry (GCCR) | Population | Leukemia (N = 1001) | ≤ 1/2–6/> 6 | Questionnaire and telephone interview | Matched: gender, date of birth and district. Adjusted: socioeconomic status (SES). | 7 | Moderate |
Shu, 1999, USA and Canada [39] | 1989–1993 | PC-CS | 2200/2418 | 1–17 | The Children’s Cancer Group (CCG), 1989–1993 | Population | Leukemia (N = 2200) | Never/1–3/4–6/7–9/10–12/> 12; Ever vs. never | Interview of mothers | Matched: age, geographic location and ethnicity. Adjusted: maternal race, maternal education, and family annual income. | 8 | Moderate |
Smulevich, 1999, Russia [40] | 1986–1988 | PC-CS | 593/1181 | 0–14 | Russian Cancer Research Center RAMS | Population | Lymphoma (N = 117); leukemia (N = 199); brain tumors (N = 57); neuroblastoma(N = 42); nephroblastoma (N = 48); STS (N = 53); other cancers (N = 77) | < 1/1–2/3–4/5–6/7–12/> 12 (leukemia, STS, neuroblastoma, nephroblastoma); ≤ 2/3–4/5–6/7–12/> 12 (lymphoma, brain tumors) | Interview of mothers | Matched: age, gender and residence. Adjusted: none. | 7 | Moderate |
Dockerty, 1999, New Zealand [41] | 1991–1995 | PC-CS | 97/303 | 0–14 | National databases including the New Zealand Cancer Registry | Population | ALL (N = 97) | Never/≤6/> 6–12/> 12; Ever vs. never | Interview of mothers | Matched: age and sex.Adjusted: age, sex, child’s social class, mother’s education, household crowding, delay from reference date to interview. | 8 | Moderate |
Infante-Rivard, 2000, Canada [42] | 1980–1993 | PC-CS | 491/491 | 0–9 | Tertiary care centers | Population | ALL (N = 491) | Never/≤ 3/> 3 | Interview of mothers | Matched: age, sex, and region of residence at the time of diagnosis.Adjusted: none. | 8 | Moderate |
UKCCS Investigators, 2001, UK [43] | 1991–1996 | PC-CS | 3500/6964 | 1–14 | UKCCS | Population | Lymphoma (N = 342); leukemia (N = 1637); other cancers (N = 1521) | Never/< 1/1–6/≥ 7; Ever vs. never | Interview of mothers | Matched: month and year of birth, sex and region of residence at diagnosis.Adjusted: age at diagnosis, sex, region, birth order and deprivation index. | 7 | Moderate |
Hardell, 2001, Sweden [14] | 1993–1996 | PC-CS | 835/860 | 0–14 | Swedish Cancer Register | Population | Leukemia (N = 235); lymphoma (N = 99); brain tumors (N = 264); neuroblastoma (N = 34); retinoblastoma (N = 22); germ cell tumors (N = 21); STS(N = 37); other cancers (N = 123) | 0– < 1/1– < 6/≥ 6;≥ 1 vs. 0- < 1 | Routine child health records | Matched: age and sex.Adjusted: none. | 8 | Moderate |
Schüz, 2001, Germany [44] | 1988–1994 | PC-CS | 465/2442 | 0–14 | German Children’s Cancer Registry (GCCR) | Population | Brain tumors (N = 281); other cancers (N = 184) | ≤ 1/2–6/> 6 | Questionnaire and telephone interview | Matched: gender and date of birth within 1 year.Adjusted: degree of urbanization and socioeconomic status. | 7 | Moderate |
Daniels, 2002, USA and Canada [45] | 1992–1994 | PC-CS | 393/376 | 0.5–19 | The Children’s Oncology Group in the United States and Canada, 1992–1994 | Population | Neuroblastoma (N = 393) | Never/0–3/4–6/7–9/9–12/≥ 13; Ever vs. never | Interview of mothers | Matched: date of birth.Adjusted: income and age. | 6 | Moderate |
Murray, 2002, UK [46] | 1975–1986 | Historical cohort | 178/409969 | 0–16 | The Northern Ireland Cancer Registry | Population | ALL (N = 178) | Ever vs. never | Child health records | Matched: none.Adjusted: none. | 6 | Serious |
Perrillat, 2002, France [47] | 1995–1999 | HC-CS | 247/237 | 2–15 | The hospitals of Lille, Lyon, Nancy and Paris | Hospital patients | Leukemia (N = 247) | Never/< 3/3–5/6–11/≥ 12; Ever vs. never | Interview of mothers | Matched: age, gender, hospital, hospital catchment area and ethnic origin.Adjusted: age, gender, hospital, ethnic origin, maternal educational level and parental socio professional category, birth weight, length of pregnancy and number of previous pregnancies | 8 | Moderate |
Lancashire, 2003, UK [13] | 1972–1981 | PC-CS | 3376/3376 | 1–14 | The Oxford Survey of Childhood Cancers (OSCC) | Population | Leukemia (N = 1342); other cancers (N = 2034) | Never/< 1/1–6/≥ 7; Ever vs. never | Interview of parents | Matched: sex and date of birth.Adjusted: sex, age at death, father’s occupational social class, sibship position, maternal age at child’s birth. | 7 | Moderate |
Jourdan-Da, 2004, France [48] | 1995–1998 | PC-CS | 452/530 | 1–15 | The National Registry of Childhood Leukemia and Lymphoma | Population | Leukemia (N = 452) | Never/< 3/3–6/> 6; Ever vs. never | Self-administered questionnaire to mother | Matched: age, sex and region.Adjusted: gender, age at diagnosis, region of residence at diagnosis. | 7 | Moderate |
Altinkaynak, 2006, Turkey [49] | 1990–2000 | PC-CS | 137/146 | 1–16 | The Ataturk University Medicine Faculty | Population | Leukemia (N = 87); lymphoma(N = 50) | 0–6 vs. > 6 | Interview of mothers | Matched: sex and age.Adjusted: none. | 7 | Moderate |
Saddlemire, 2006, USA and Canada [50] | 1999–2002 | PC-CS | 461/443 | 0.5–16 | The Children’s Oncology Group in the United States and Canada, 1999–2002 | Population | Wilms tumor (N = 461) | Never/0–3/4–6/7–9/10–12/≥ 13; Ever vs. never | Telephone interviews of mothers | Matched: age strata and geographic region of residence.Adjusted: child’s age at reference date, geographic region of residence, household income and mother’s education. | 7 | Moderate |
Shaw, 2006, Canada [51] | 1980–1993;1995–1999 | PC-CS | 272/272 | 0–14 | Tertiary care centers in the province of Quebec | Population | Brain tumors (N = 272) | Never/≤ 8 weeks/9-24 weeks/> 24 weeks; Ever vs. never | Interview of parents | Matched: sex and age at diagnosis.Adjusted: mother’s education level. | 6 | Moderate |
Petridou, 2006, Greece [52] | 1996–2002 | HC-CS | 71/71 | 0–14 | A nationwide network of childhood hematologists/oncologists | Hospital patients | HD (N = 71) | Ever vs. never | Interview of guardians | Matched: gender and age (±6 months).Adjusted: demographic, socioeconomic, anthropometric and perinatal variables. | 7 | Serious |
Bener, 2008, United Arab Emirates [53] | 1983–2004 | HC-CS | 169/169 | 0–15 | Tawam Hospital, Al Ain | Hospital (healthy subjects) | ALL (N = 103); HD (N = 32); NHL (N = 34) | 0–6 vs. > 6 | Telephone interviews with mothers | Matched: age and sex.Adjusted: none. | 6 | Moderate |
MacArthur, 2008, Canada [54] | 1990–1994 | PC-CS | 399/399 | 0–14 | Pediatric oncology treatment centers and cancer registries | Population | Leukemia (N = 399) | Never/0–3/4–6/7–12/> 12 | Interview of parents or guardians | Matched: age, gender, and area.Adjusted: maternal age at birth, maternal education, annual household income, ethnicity, and number of residences since birth. | 6 | Moderate |
Flores-Lujano, 2008, Mexico [55] | 1998–2006 | HC-CS | 57/218 | 0–19 | The institutions that treat children with cancer in Mexico | Children with Down syndrome | Leukemia (N = 57) | Never/≤ 6/≥ 7; Ever vs. never | Interview of parents | Matched: none.Adjusted: sex, weight at birth < 2500 g, age of child, firstborn child, low standard of living and cardiovascular diseases. | 6 | Moderate |
Rudant, 2010, France [56] | 2003–2004 | PC-CS | 720/1494 | 1–14 | ESCALE, 2003–2004 | Population | ALL (N = 634); AML (N = 86) | Never/≤ 2/3–5/6–11/≥ 12; Ever vs. never | Telephone interview of mothers | Matched: age and gender.Adjusted: age, gender, parental professional category, degree of urbanization, and maternal age at child’s birth. | 8 | Moderate |
Rudant, 2011, France [57] | 2003–2004 | PC-CS | 291/2149 | 2–14 | ESCALE, 2003–2004 | Population | HD (N = 127); NHL (N = 164) | Never/< 6/≥ 6 | Telephone interview of mothers | Matched: age and gender.Adjusted: age, gender, parental professional category, degree of urbanization, maternal age at child birth and housing, for contact with animals. | 8 | Moderate |
Waly, 2011, Sultanate of Oman [58] | 2008–2010 | HC-CS | 70/70 | NA2 | The Sultan Qaboos University Hospital | Relatives of the cases | ALL (N = 70) | < 6/6–12/12–24/ > 24 | Interview of mothers | Matched: none.Adjusted: none. | 6 | Serious |
Urayama, 2012, USA [59] | 1995–2008 | PC-CS | 507/762 | 1–14 | The Northern California Childhood Leukemia Study | Population | ALL (N = 507) | Ever vs. never | Questionnaire to parents or guardians | Matched: date of birth, sex, Hispanic status, and maternal race.Adjusted: age, sex, maternal age, maternal education, annual household income and race/ethnicity. | 8 | Moderate |
Lupo, 2014, USA [60] | 1982–1988 | PC-CS | 319/317 | 0–20 | Intergroup Rhabdomyosarcoma Study Group (IRSG) | Population | Rhabdomyosarcoma (N = 319) | Never/< 6/6–12/≥ 12; Ever vs. never | Telephone interview to mothers | Matched: race, sex, and age.Adjusted: age, race, sex, household income, maternal, and paternal education. | 7 | Moderate |
Mattioli, 2014, Italy [61] | 1998–2003 | PC-CS | 82/1040 | 0–10 | Childhood acute leukemia in 14 Italian Regions | Population | AnLL (N = 82) | Never/1–3/4–6/> 6 | Interview of parents | Matched: date of birth, sex and residence area.Adjusted: none. | 6 | Serious |
Schraw, 2014, USA [62] | 1997–2011 | PC-CS | 142/284 | 0–14 | The Texas Children’s Cancer Center | Healthy subjects | ALL (N = 142) | Ever vs. never | Questionnaire to mothers | Matched: age, sex, race, and ethnicity.Adjusted: none. | 7 | Moderate |
Ajrouche, 2015, France [63] | 2010–2011 | PC-CS | 617/1225 | 1–14 | ESTELLE, 2010–2011 | Population | ALL (N = 617) | Never/< 6/≥ 6; Ever vs. never | Telephone interview of mothers | Matched: age and gender.Adjusted: age, gender, parental professional category, maternal age, and degree of urbanization. | 8 | Moderate |
Greenop, 2015, Australia [64] | 2003–2006;2005–2010 | PC-CS | 592/1389 | 0–14 | Aus-ALL and Aus-CBT | Population | ALL (N = 314); brain tumors (N = 278) | Never/< 3/3- < 6/≥ 6; Ever vs. never | Questionnaire to mothers | Matched: age, sex, and state of residence.Adjusted: Matched variables, maternal education, maternal age at birth, birth order, proportion of optimum birth weight. | 7 | Moderate |
Heck, 2015, USA and Canada [65] | 2006–2011 | HC-CS | 243/134 | 0–15 | Wills Eye Hospital in Philadelphia, or the Children’s Oncology Group | Friends or unrelated children of case family | Retinoblastoma (N = 243) | < 1/1–6/7–11/≥ 12; Ever vs. never | Telephone interview of parents | Matched: age.Adjusted: child’s age at interview, mother’s race/ethnicity, mother’s educational attainment, and household income. | 7 | Moderate |
Amitay, 2016, Israeli [66] | 2005–2013 | PC-CS | 178/357 | 1–18 | The hematologic departments of five large Israeli hospitals | Population | Leukemia (N = 117); lymphoma (N = 61) | ≤ 6 vs. > 6 | Interview of mothers | Matched: age, gender, and spoken language.Adjusted: none. | 7 | Moderate |
Rios, 2016, France [67] | 2003–2004;2010–2011 | PC-CS | 269/1589 | 0.5–6 | ESCALE, 2003–2004; ESTELLE, 2010–2011 | Population | Neuroblastoma (N = 269) | Never/< 3/3–5/≥ 6; Ever vs. never | Telephone interview of mothers | Matched: age and gender.Adjusted: age and sex, birth order, maternal age, urban status of the area of residence and study. | 8 | Moderate |
Bailey, 2017, France [68] | 2003–2004;2010–2011 | PC-CS | 469/2719 | 1–14 | ESCALE, 2003–2004; ESTELLE, 2010–2011 | Population | Brain tumors (N = 469) | Never/< 3/3- < 6/≥ 6; Ever vs. never | Telephone interview of mothers | Matched: age and gender.Adjusted: age and gender. | 8 | Moderate |
Schraw, 2017, USA [69] | 1997–2012 | PC-CS | 171/342 | 0–14 | Texas Children’s Cancer Center in Houston | Population | ALL (N = 171) | Ever vs. never | Questionnaire to parents | Matched: sex, ethnicity, and age.Adjusted: none. | 7 | Moderate |
Gao, 2018, China [70] | 2008–2017 | HC-CS | 958/785 | 0–14 | The Children’s Hospital of Zhejiang University | Hospital patients | Leukemia (N = 958) | Never/1–3/4–6/7–9/10–12/≥ 13 | Medical records | Matched: none.Adjusted: family history of cancer, the family history of neoplasm of the lymphatic/hematopoietic systems, history of bedroom decoration, smoking during pregnancy, the history of using birth control pills before pregnancy, abortion history, Down’s syndrome and parents use of hair dye. | 8 | Moderate |
Jiménez-Hernández, 2018, Mexico [18] | 2010–2015 | HC-CS | 1455/1455 | 0–17.6 | Private and public hospitals in Mexico City | Hospital patients | Leukemia (N = 1455) | Never/0–3.9/4–6.9/7–12.9/> 13 | Interview of mothers | Matched: none.Adjusted: none. | 5 | Serious |
Lingappa, 2018, India [71] | 2015 | HC-CS | 120/120 | 1–15 | Kidwai Institute of Oncology | the elder sibling of the cases | Leukemia (N = 120) | Never/< 4/4–6/6–9/ 9–12/13–18/ 19–24/> 24;Ever vs. never | Interview of mothers | Matched: parental education, socioeconomic status, and the region of residence.Adjusted: none. | 5 | Moderate |
Rafieemehr, 2019, Iran [72] | 2015–2018 | HC-CS | 125/130 | 1–12 | Be’sat Hospital of Hamadan University of Medical Sciences | Hospital (healthy subjects) | ALL (N = 125) | Ever vs. never; 1–3/4–6/7–9/ 10–12/≥ 24 | Interview of parents | Matched: age, sex, gender, and residence location.Adjusted: none. | 6 | Serious |
Bauer, 2020, France [73] | 2015–2018 | PC-CS | 112/996 | 0.5–11 | ESTELLE, 2010–2011 | Population | Wilms tumor (N = 112) | Never/ < 3/3–5/≥ 6; Ever vs. never | Telephone interview of mothers | Matched: age and gender. Adjusted: age, gender, birth order, and maternal age. | 7 | Moderate |