Table 2.
Selected characteristics of 13 case–control studies of fertility treatment and cancers
| First author, Year | Study period | Geographic region | Exposure | Reported cancers | No. of | Adjustments or matches made | Quality score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Treated/total cases | Treated/total control | |||||||
| Michalek 1996 | 1976–1987 | United States | Fertility drugs | Neuroblastoma | 5/183 | 1/372 | Age | 7 |
| Roman 1997 | 1962–1992 | United Kingdom | Fertility drugs | Leukaemia | 4/143 | 3/286 | Area of birth, gender, age | 7 |
| Olshan 1999 | 1992–1996 | United States | Fertility drugs | Neuroblastoma | 28/459 | 26/459 | Age of children, mother's ethnic group, mother's education, and household income | 7 |
| Schüz 1999 | 1992–1997 | Germany | Fertility drugs | CNS tumours | 18/376 | 120/2,443 | Age, gender and district of residence | 7 |
| Neuroblastoma | 8/145 | 120/2,443 | ||||||
| Leukaemia | 53/896 | 35/896 | ||||||
| Lymphoma | 8/210 | 120/2,443 | ||||||
| Renal tumours | 8/138 | 120/2,443 | ||||||
| Bone tumours and extraosseous sarcomas | 10/225 | 120/2,443 | ||||||
| McLaughlin 2006 | 1985–2001 | United States | Fertility treatment | Hepatic tumours | 5/58 | 23/6,056 | Age | 7 |
| Puumala 2007 | 1997–2002 | United States | Fertility treatment | Leukaemia | 27/158 | 28/173 | Mother's age, child's gender, ethnic group, and education | 6 |
| Mallol‐Mesnard 2008 | 2003–2004 | France | ART | CNS tumours | 11/209 | 82/1,681 | Age and gender | 7 |
| Puumala 2010 | 1996–2002 | United States | Fertility drugs | Leukaemia | 19/443 | 15/324 | Age, maternal age, maternal education, maternal ethnic group, smoking during pregnancy, household income, gestational age and birthweight. | 8 |
| Puumala 2011 | 1993–2002 | United States | Fertility drugs | Germ cell tumours | 5/278 | 11/421 | Gender and age | 7 |
| Petridou 2012 | 1996–2008 | Greece | ART | Leukaemia | 24/814 | 15/814 | Birth weight, birth order, maternal age at birth, maternal education, maternal smoking during pregnancy | 7 |
| Lymphoma | 2/277 | 1/277 | ||||||
| Foix‐L'Hélias 2012 | 2000–2006 | France | Fertility treatment | Retinoblastoma | 20/244 | 1,555/26,767 | Maternal age at birth and smoking | 6 |
| Puumala 2012 | 2000–2008 | United States | Fertility treatment | Hepatic tumours | 34/383 | 45/384 | Birthweight, age, gender, maternal age, maternal education, maternal ethnic group, plurality and gestational age | 8 |
| Rudant 2013 | 2003–2004 | France | Fertility treatment | Leukaemia | 59/764 | 82/1,681 | Age, gender, maternal age and parental professional category | 8 |
Abbreviations: ART, assisted reproductive technology; CNS, central nervous system.