Introduction: We investigated the role of maternal alcohol and coffee drinking and parental smoking on the risk of childhood acute leukemia in a multicenter case-control study.
Methods: The study included 280 incident cases and 288 hospitalized controls, frequency matched with the cases by age, gender and center. Data collection was completed by face-to-face standardized interviews of the case and control mothers.
Results: An association with maternal alcohol consumption during pregnancy was observed with acute lymphoid leukemia (ALL) (OR=2.0 [1.4-3.0]) and acute non-lymphoid leukemia (ANLL) (OR=2.6 [1.2-5.8]). Maternal coffee consumption during pregnancy was associated with childhood acute leukemia, ORs increasing in ALL with coffee consumption (OR=1.1 [0.7-1.8], OR=2.4 [1.3-4.7] and OR=3.1 [1.0-9.5], respectively, for < or =3, 4-8 and >8 cups/day). No association with maternal smoking during pregnancy or parental smoking before or after the index child's birth was observed.
Discussion: Our results suggest an association with maternal alcohol and coffee drinking during pregnancy and call for further investigations. Besides, the present study does not support the hypothesis of an increase in the risk of childhood leukemia related to parental smoking.