TY - JOUR
T1 - Association between neonatal phototherapy and future cancer
T2 - an updated systematic review and meta-analysis
AU - Abdellatif, Mohammed
AU - Tawfik, Gehad Mohamed
AU - Makram, Abdelrahman M.
AU - Abdelsattar, Mostafa Khaled
AU - Dobs, Monica
AU - Papadopoulos, Dimitrios N.
AU - Hoang-Trong, Bao Long
AU - Mostafa, Esraa Mahmoud
AU - Duong, Pham Diep Thuy
AU - Huy, Nguyen Tien
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.
PY - 2022/11/10
Y1 - 2022/11/10
N2 - Phototherapy is the main treatment of neonatal hyperbilirubinemia to prevent encephalopathy. It is generally believed to be safe; however, some studies have shown it might be associated with cancer development. In this systematic review and meta-analysis, we aimed to assess the effect of neonatal phototherapy on future cancer risk. A systematic search in 13 databases was conducted in December 2018 and updated in August 2022 to identify studies that report cancer development after exposure to phototherapy. Throughout the study period, regular manual searches were also conducted to include new studies. A meta-analysis using R programming language was done in which the odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated and pooled using the reported adjusted and unadjusted data. Fifteen studies were included. A statistically significant association was detected between neonatal phototherapy and any type of cancer (OR 1.24; 95% CI 1.1, 1.4), any hematopoietic cancer (OR 1.49; 95% CI 1.17, 1.91), any leukemia (OR 1.35; 95% CI 1.08, 1.67), and myeloid leukemia (OR 2.86; 95% CI 1.4, 5.84). The other investigated cancers (lymphoid leukemia, Hodgkin’s lymphoma, kidney cancer, nervous system cancer, and skin cancer) were not associated with phototherapy. Conclusions: Phototherapy may carry a possible risk of future cancers. Future research is needed to quantify the magnitude of the cancer risk. These future studies should consider predictors of preterm birth or exclude premature babies from their analysis. What is Known• There were various reports about the possible association between phototherapy in neonates and the increased risk of cancer in the future.What is New• A statistically significant association between phototherapy and various hematopoietic cancers (especially myeloid leukemia) was recorded.• The effect of the duration of phototherapy on the increased risk of hematopoietic cancers is yet unclear.
AB - Phototherapy is the main treatment of neonatal hyperbilirubinemia to prevent encephalopathy. It is generally believed to be safe; however, some studies have shown it might be associated with cancer development. In this systematic review and meta-analysis, we aimed to assess the effect of neonatal phototherapy on future cancer risk. A systematic search in 13 databases was conducted in December 2018 and updated in August 2022 to identify studies that report cancer development after exposure to phototherapy. Throughout the study period, regular manual searches were also conducted to include new studies. A meta-analysis using R programming language was done in which the odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated and pooled using the reported adjusted and unadjusted data. Fifteen studies were included. A statistically significant association was detected between neonatal phototherapy and any type of cancer (OR 1.24; 95% CI 1.1, 1.4), any hematopoietic cancer (OR 1.49; 95% CI 1.17, 1.91), any leukemia (OR 1.35; 95% CI 1.08, 1.67), and myeloid leukemia (OR 2.86; 95% CI 1.4, 5.84). The other investigated cancers (lymphoid leukemia, Hodgkin’s lymphoma, kidney cancer, nervous system cancer, and skin cancer) were not associated with phototherapy. Conclusions: Phototherapy may carry a possible risk of future cancers. Future research is needed to quantify the magnitude of the cancer risk. These future studies should consider predictors of preterm birth or exclude premature babies from their analysis. What is Known• There were various reports about the possible association between phototherapy in neonates and the increased risk of cancer in the future.What is New• A statistically significant association between phototherapy and various hematopoietic cancers (especially myeloid leukemia) was recorded.• The effect of the duration of phototherapy on the increased risk of hematopoietic cancers is yet unclear.
KW - Infant
KW - Kidney neoplasms
KW - Leukemia
KW - Neoplasms
KW - Newborn
KW - Phototherapy
KW - Premature Birth
KW - Humans
KW - Jaundice, Neonatal/therapy
KW - Hyperbilirubinemia, Neonatal/therapy
KW - Infant, Premature
KW - Skin Neoplasms
KW - Female
KW - Infant, Newborn
KW - Phototherapy/adverse effects
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UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85141719726&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s00431-022-04675-6
DO - 10.1007/s00431-022-04675-6
M3 - Article
C2 - 36352244
AN - SCOPUS:85141719726
SN - 0340-6199
VL - 182
SP - 329
EP - 341
JO - European Journal of Pediatrics
JF - European Journal of Pediatrics
IS - 1
ER -
