Adel Fahmideh, Maral, Tettamanti, Giorgio, Tynes, Tore, Grotzer, Michael, Lannering, Birgitta, Feychting, Maria, Vienneau, Danielle, Shu, Xiaochen, Röösli, Martin, Schüz, Joachim, Kuehni, Claudia E, Johansen, Christoffer, Klaeboe, Lars, and Schmidt, Lisbeth S
BACKGROUND Previous studies have evaluated the effect of medical diagnostic radiation on brain tumors. Recent cohort studies have reported an increased risk associated with exposure to head CT scans. METHODS Information regarding medical conditions, including prenatal and postnatal exposure to medical diagnostic radiation, was obtained from CEFALO, a multicenter case-control study performed in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland through face-to-face interview. Eligible cases of childhood and adolescent brain tumors (CABT) were ages 7 to 19 years, diagnosed between January 1, 2004 and August 31, 2008, and living in the participating countries (n = 352). The cases were matched by age, sex, and region to 646 population-based controls. RESULTS Prenatal exposure to medical diagnostic radiation and postnatal exposure to X-rays were not associated with CABTs. A higher risk estimate of CABTs, although not statistically significant, was found for exposure to head CT scan (OR, 1.86; 95% confidence interval, 0.82-4.22). The associations with head injury, febrile seizure, fever in the first 12 weeks, and general anesthesia were close to unity. CONCLUSIONS Prenatal or postnatal medical conditions, including medical diagnostic radiation, were not associated with CABTs. On the basis of small numbers of exposed children, we observed a nonsignificant increased risk for CT scans of the head. IMPACT We have presented additional evidence, suggesting that exposure to head CT scan may be associated with the occurrence of CABTs. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 26(1); 110-5. ©2016 AACR.