In an analysis of 14 studies looking at an association between socialcontact and childhood leukaemia, researchers from the University ofCalifornia found 12 studies that said social interaction with otherchildren has a protective effect. No research concluded that socialcontact increased the risk of childhood leukaemia.
The studies looked at a combined total of 6,108 children with leukaemiaand 13,704 without the disease. Parents were asked about theirchildren's daycare and playgroup attendance, as well as other forms ofsocial interaction.
Dr Patricia Buffler, who led the research and presented the findings atthe annual Children with Leukaemia conference last week (29 April),said, 'Combining the results from these studies together provided uswith more confidence that the protective effect is real. Our analysisconcluded that children who attended daycare or playgroups had about a30 per cent lower risk of developing leukaemia than those who did not.Combined results for studies of daycare attendance specifically beforethe age of one or two showed a similarly reduced risk.'
Leukaemia is the most common form of cancer found in children, affectingabout one in every 2,000. Daycare is thought to confer protectivebenefits against the disease because intense social contact with otherchildren increases the chance of common infections spreading, which isthought to challenge a child's immune system and encourage it to developnormally.
Some researchers believe that if a child's immune system is notchallenged early in life, it will not develop properly or react normallyto infections later in childhood, which could be a cause of leukaemia.
