Survival from childhood cancer in Yorkshire, UK: Effect of ethnicity and socio-economic status

The effect of ethnicity and socio-economic status on the survival of a popu lation-based cohort of 1979 children diagnosed with cancer between 1974 and 1995 was investigated. Ethnicity was assigned by computer algorithms and v isual inspection as south Asian (or not) for each child, based on their ful l name. Socio-economic status was measured using the Carstairs index, based on census areas of case residence at diagnosis. 15 children (0.8%) were lo st to follow-up. Log-rank tests showed survival from all cancers did not di ffer between south Asians and other children and no increased risk was obse rved for south Asians in any diagnostic category, although numbers were sma ll. Increasing levels of deprivation were associated with significant trend s of poorer survival from all cancers, leukaemias and brain tumours. Risk o f death was typically higher for children from the most deprived areas alth ough differences were not statistically significant after accounting for ot her factors including ethnicity. Taking all children with malignant disease together, neither ethnicity nor socio-economic status appear to influence survival after taking other factors into consideration. (C) 1999 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.