Leukaemia incidents after Chernobyl accident

Romania and especially its Eastern territory were among the most heavily affected area after Chernobyl accident. The objective of our study was to investigate whether or not the nuclear accident determined an increased number of leukaemia cases. The specific rates of leukaemia incidents by age group were calculated in 588167 children aged 0-6 years in April 1986 and 99917 children which have been exposed 'in utero'. The rates of 1989-1994 period were compared with the rates of 1980-1985 period. The incidence rates were lower in the exposed group than that in controls for children under 1 year (20.52/105 inh vs 23.11/105 inh), 1-3 years (13.26/105 inh vs 16.11/105 inh) and 4-6 years (9.58/105 inh vs 10.58/105 inh). The cohort of 'in utero' exposed children presented a leukaemia incidences insignificantly higher than that before the accident (23.10/105 inh vs 15.93/105 inh)