The descriptive epidemiology of childhood leukaemia and childhood brain tumours - a comparison

• The aetiology of childhood leukaemia has been associated with exposure to infections and there is some emerging evidence for similar links to CNS tumours. • A comparison of the descriptive epidemiology of these two conditions may offer some insights into other similarities. • International incidence rates of childhood leukaemia and CNS tumours show a significant, positive association. • There is a small but statistically significant and consistent rise in the rates of CNS tumours across 3 decades. The rates of leukaemia and ALL may appear to be increasing but this is not statistically significant overall.