Childhood leukemia, military aviation facilities, and population mixing.In a recent article on the striking cluster of childhood leukemia in 2000-2001 near the Fallon Naval Air Station A Naval Air Station is an airbase of the United States Navy. Such bases are used to house Naval Aviation squadrons and support commands. List of Functioning US Naval Air Stations
sub·clin·i·cal adj. Not manifesting characteristic clinical symptoms. Used of a disease or condition. ) epidemics of infections. If childhood leukemia is a rare response to a common--but unidentified--infection, then these localized epidemics will produce excess cases of the unusual complication, childhood leukemia. Studies of all known examples of extreme rural-urban population mixing in Britain in the past 60 years have, in each instance, revealed significant temporary excesses of childhood leukemia (Kinlen 1995, 2000). These findings have been supported by studies conducted in other countries, most recently by an excess of childhood leukemia in isolated rural counties of the United States Every state in the United States has subdivisions. In 48 of the states, they are called Counties, in Alaska, they are called boroughs and census areas, and in Louisiana they are called parishes. where substantial population increases have occurred (Wartenberg et al. 2004). None of these "mixing" situations, however, can compare in intensity with the indirect exposure of the small town of Fallon, Nevada Fallon is a city in Churchill County, Nevada, United States. The population was 7,536 at the 2000 census. But as of 2006 the population of Fallon, Nevada was 8,299 [1]. (population 7,536), in only a few years, to over 100,000 military personnel from outside the area receiving training at the naval air station, reaching the extraordinary level of 55,000 in 2000 (GlobalSecurity.org 2003; U.S. Navy 2002). That the world's most sharply defined cluster of childhood leukemia (Alexander 1993; Steinmaus et al. 2004) should occur in association with the most extreme example of rural-urban population mixing could not be more arresting (Kinlen and Doll 2004). Every opportunity should be taken to investigate the role that infection may have played in this extraordinary cluster of childhood leukemia. Unlike most studies of marked population mixing, where the relevant circumstances occurred some time ago, this recent cluster provides researchers with the chance to thoroughly study the cases (and other members of the population) for evidence of exposure to the relevant infectious agent infectious agent Pathogen, see there . It is an opportunity that should not be missed. The author declares he has no competing financial interests. REFERENCES Alexander FE. 1993 Viruses, clusters and clustering of childhood leukaemia: a new perspective? Eur J Cancer 29A:1423-1424. GlobalSecurity.org. 2093. Naval Air Station Fallon Naval Air Station Fallon or NAS Fallon (IATA: NFL, ICAO: KNFL, FAA LID: NFL) is the United States Navy's premier air-to-air and air-to-ground training facility. It is located in the city of Fallon in western Nevada in the United States. . Available: http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/fecility/fallon.htm [accessed 5 April 2004]. Kinlen L. 1988, Evidence for an infective cause of childhood leukaemia: comparison of a Scottish new town with nuclear reprocessing Nuclear reprocessing separates any usable elements (e.g., uranium and plutonium) from fission products and other materials in spent nuclear reactor fuels. Usually the goal is to recycle the reprocessed uranium or place these elements in new mixed oxide fuel (MOX), but some sites in Britain. Lancet 2:1323-1327. Kinlen LJ. 1995. Epidemiological evidence for an infective basis in childhood leukaemia. Br J Cancer 71:1-5. Kinlen LJ. 2000 Infection, childhood leukaemia and the Seascale cluster. Radiol Prot Bull 228:9-18. Kinlen L, Doll R. 2904. Population mixing and childhood leukaemia: Fallon and other US clusters [Editorial]. Br J Cancer 91:1-3. Steinmaus C, Lu M, Todd RL, Smith AH. 2004, Probability estimates for the unique childhood leukemia cluster in Fallon, Nevada, and risks near other U.S. military aviation facilities. Environ Health Perspect 112:766-771. U.S. Navy 2002. Naval Air Station, Fallon, Nevada. History. Available: http://www.fallon.navy.mil/history.htm [accessed 12 May 2004]. Wartenberg D, Schneider D, Brown S. 2994. Childhood leukemia incidence and the population mixing hypothesis in US SEER data. Br J Cancer 90:1771-1776. Editor's note Editor's Note (foaled in 1993 in Kentucky) is an American thoroughbred Stallion racehorse. He was sired by 1992 U.S. Champion 2 YO Colt Forty Niner, who in turn was a son of Champion sire Mr. Prospector and out of the mare, Beware Of The Cat. Trained by D. : In accordance with journal policy, Steinmaus et al. were asked whether they wanted to respond to this letter, but they chose not to do so. Leo Leo, in astronomy Leo [Lat.,=the lion], northern constellation lying S of Ursa Major and on the ecliptic (apparent path of the sun through the heavens) between Cancer and Virgo; it is one of the constellations of the zodiac. J. Kinlen University of Oxford Radcliffe Infirmary The Radcliffe Infirmary was a hospital in central Oxford, England, located at the southern end of Woodstock Road on the western side, backing onto Walton Street. The Radcliffe Infirmary, named after physician John Radcliffe, opened in 1770 and was Oxford's first hospital, and Oxford, United Kingdom E-mail: leo.kinlen@dphpc.ox.ac.uk |
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