Extremely low-frequency magnetic fields and survival from childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia: an international follow-up study

A previous US study reported poorer survival in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) exposed to extremely low-frequency magnetic fields (ELF–MF) above 0.3 μT, but based on small numbers. Data from 3073 cases of childhood ALL were pooled from prospective studies conducted in Canada, Denmark, Germany, Japan, UK and US to determine death or relapse up to 10 years from diagnosis. Adjusting for known prognostic factors, we calculated hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for overall survival and event-free survival for ELF–MF exposure categories and by 0.1 μT increases. The HRs by 0.1 μT increases were 1.00 (CI, 0.93–1.07) for event-free survival analysis and 1.04 (CI, 0.97–1.11) for overall survival. ALL cases exposed to >0.3 μT did not have a poorer event-free survival (HR=0.76; CI, 0.44–1.33) or overall survival (HR=0.96; CI, 0.49–1.89). HRs varied little by subtype of ALL. In conclusion, ELF–MF exposure has no impact on the survival probability or risk of relapse in children with ALL.