CANCER OF INFANCY IN ISRAEL - A 7-YEAR EPIDEMIOLOGIC SURVEY

Malignant tumors were diagnosed in 129 Jewish Israeli infants in the y ears 1983 through 1989. This gives an incidence of 217.94 per million. The incidence of primary liver tumors, neuroblastomas and soft tissue malignancies was higher in Israel than reported elsewhere. Birth weig ht was significantly higher than the average in infants with leukemia (p > 0.025) and lower in those with sarcoma (p > 0.05). A higher than expected percentage of twins was found among the patients. A high rate of malignancy was found in children who had one of their parents born in Asia compared with those born in Israel, Africa, Europe or America , and in relation to the population demography (p > 0.025 for the fath er and the mother). The results of our work emphasize the importance o f genetic background in the pathogenesis of infantile malignancy.