We investigated the relation between radiotherapy in childhood for tinea capitis and the later development of tumors of the brain and nervous system among 10,834 patients treated between 1948 and 1960 in Israel. Benign and malignant tumors were identified from the pathology records of all Israeli hospitals and from Israeli national cancer and death registries. Doses of radiation to the neural tissue were retrospectively estimated for each patient (mean, 1.5 Gy). Sixty neural tumors developed in the patients exposed as children, and the 30-year cumulative risk (+/- SE) was 0.8 +/- 0.2 percent. The incidence of tumors was 1.8 per 10,000 persons per year. The estimated relative risk as compared with that for 10,834 matched general-population controls and 5392 siblings who had not been irradiated was 6.9 (95 percent confidence interval, 4.1 to 11.6) for all tumors and 8.4 (confidence interval, 4.8 to 14.8) when the analysis was restricted to neural tumors of the head and neck. Increased risks were apparent for meningiomas (relative risk, 9.5; n = 19), gliomas (relative risk, 2.6; n = 7), nerve-sheath tumors (relative risk, 18.8; n = 25), and other neural tumors (relative risk, 3.4; n = 9). A strong dose--response relation was found, with the relative risk approaching 20 after estimated doses of approximately 2.5 Gy. Our study confirms that radiation doses on the order of 1 to 2 Gy can significantly increase the risk of neural tumors.

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Radiation exposures to the scalp during childhood for tinea capitis were associated with a fourfold increase in skin cancer, primarily basal cell carcinomas, and a threefold increase in benign skin tumors. Malignant melanoma, however, was not significantly elevated. Overall, 80 neoplasms were identified from an extensive search of the pathology logs of all major hospitals in Israel and computer linkage with the national cancer registry. Radiation dose to the scalp was computed for over 10,000 persons irradiated for ringworm (mean 7 Gy), and incidence rates were contrasted with those observed in 16,000 matched comparison subjects. The relative risk of radiogenic skin cancer did not differ significantly between men or women or by time since exposure; however, risk was greatest following exposures in early childhood. After adjusting for sex, ethnic origin, and attained age, the estimated excess relative risk was 0.7 per Gy and the average excess risk over the current follow-up was 0.31/10(4) PY-Gy. The risk per Gy of radiation-induced skin cancer was intermediate between the high risk found among whites and no risk found among blacks in a similar study conducted in New York City (Shore et al., Radiat. Res. 100, 192-204, 1984). This finding suggests the role that subsequent exposure to uv radiation likely plays in the expression of a potential radiation-induced skin malignancy.

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During the years 1994-1999, a nationwide ovarian cancer case-control study was conducted in Israel. The present analysis addresses the question: Is epithelial ovarian cancer associated with body mass index at age 18 years and/or with weight changes in body mass index between adolescence and adult life? The study is based on 1,269 women with epithelial ovarian cancer and 2,111 matched controls. A significant decrease in risk of ovarian cancer was observed with parity, oral contraceptive use, and postmenopausal status. A significant increase in risk with family history of ovarian/breast cancer was also found. No significant association with age at menarche or infertility was found. For body mass index at age 18 years, the odds ratio of the highest versus lowest body mass index quartile was 1.42 (95% confidence interval: 1.08, 1.85) and after adjusting for confounders was 1.54 (95% confidence interval: 1.17, 2.02). However, no statistically significant risk associated with change in weight from age 18 years to adult life was found. The authors conclude that, in their population, body mass index at age 18 years is an independent risk factor for ovarian cancer.

The thyroid gland is highly sensitive to the carcinogenic effects of ionizing radiation. Previously, we reported a significant increase of thyroid cancer and adenomas among 10,834 persons in Israel who received radiotherapy to the scalp for ringworm. These findings have now been extended with further follow-up and revised dosimetry. Overall, 98 thyroid tumors were identified among the exposed and 57 among 10,834 nonexposed matched population and 5392 sibling comparison subjects. An estimated thyroid dose of 9 cGy was linked to a fourfold (95% Cl = 2.3-7.9) increase of malignant tumors and a twofold (95% Cl = 1.3-3.0) increase of benign tumors. The dose-response relationship was consistent with linearity. Age was an important modifier of risk with those exposed under 5 years being significantly more prone to develop thyroid tumors than older children. The pattern of radiation risk over time could be described on the basis of a constant multiplication of the background rate, and an absolute risk model was not compatible with the observed data. Overall, the excess relative risk per cGy for thyroid cancer development after childhood exposure is estimated as 0.3, and the absolute excess risk as 13 per 10(6) PY-cGy. For benign tumors the estimated excess relative risk was 0.1 per cGy and the absolute risk was 15 per 10(6) PY-cGy.

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