Early Social Interaction Decreases Childhood Leukemia Risk

Many parents of young children worry that sending them to day care or play groups may increase their risk of getting sick, hurt or having something else happen to them. However, in a 2008 study presented at the Causes and Prevention of Childhood Leukemia conference in London, researchers determined that children that attend day care or some other social activity actually reduce their risk of acute lymphoblastic leukemia, the most common form of childhood leukemia, by 30 percent. Acute lymphoblastic leukemia makes up 80 percent of all childhood leukemia cases. Researchers were already aware that exposure to germs allows children’s immune systems to develop, decreasing their risk of developing certain diseases, such as diabetes and asthma. What they learned from the 14 studies examined was that young children that have more exposure to germs increase their protection against virus-fighting cells from becoming cancerous later on in life. This is because their immune system is more developed and they will not have to produce as many cells to fight the infection as they would with a weaker immune system, creating less of a risk that the cells will become cancerous. If children are kept isolated earlier in life, they are more likely to have a fragile immune system, increasing their risk of leukemia resulting from a virus. Genetics also play a role in a child’s risk of developing leukemia, leaving children with overactive immune systems at greater risk of developing cancer because the cells that are trying to fight a virus will divide more rapidly, creating more of a chance that they will mutate.

A different study conducted in Britain examined the risk of developing childhood leukemia by looking at children that were secluded from others and never exposed to colds or other viruses. This study revealed that those children had a much greater risk of developing childhood leukemia because they were exposed to such germs and viruses later on in their development, with an immune system that could not fight them off efficiently. The earlier children begin interacting with other children on a regular basis, the more protection they will have against childhood leukemia. Researchers noted that children that began daycare at 1 or 2 years old had the most protection against leukemia. Leukemia is a type of cancer where the bone marrow produces abnormal white blood cells (leukemia cells), which may eventually push out the normal white blood cells, red blood cells, and platelets, making it difficult for blood to function correctly. As with all cancers, treatment is most effective when the cancer is caught early on. If you or a loved one has experienced a delay in diagnosis or treatment of leukemia or any other type of cancer, please contact the cancer malpractice attorneys at Silberstein, Awad & Miklos, serving clients in Nassau and Suffolk County, Brooklyn, Bronx and Queens. Our firm also serve clients located in Staten Island and Westchester County.

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