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Geospatial Distribution of Age-adjusted Incidence of the Three Major Types of Pediatric Cancers and Waterborne Agrichemicals in Nebraska
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  • Balkissa Ouattara,
  • Jagadeesh Puvvula,
  • Azar Abadi,
  • Siddhi Munde,
  • Alan Kolok,
  • Shannon Bartelt-Hunt,
  • Jesse Bell,
  • Christopher Wichman,
  • Eleanor Rogan
Balkissa Ouattara
University of Nebraska Medical Center

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Jagadeesh Puvvula
University of Nebraska Medical Center
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Azar Abadi
University of Nebraska Medical Center
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Siddhi Munde
University of Nebraska Medical Center
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Alan Kolok
Idaho Water Resources Research Institute
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Shannon Bartelt-Hunt
University of Nebraska Lincoln
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Jesse Bell
Univ. Nebraska Medical College
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Christopher Wichman
University of Nebraska Medical Center
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Eleanor Rogan
University of Nebraska Medical Center
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Abstract

This study was conducted to examine, at the county level, the relationship between pediatric cancers incidence rate and atrazine and nitrate mean concentrations in surface and groundwater. A negative binomial regression analysis was performed to investigate the association between central nervous system (CNS) tumors, leukemia, lymphoma, and atrazine and nitrate mean concentrations in surface and groundwater. The age-adjusted brain and other CNS cancers incidence was higher than the national average in 63% of the Nebraska counties. After controlling for nitrate concentrations in surface and groundwater, counties with atrazine concentrations between 0.95 - 2.82 µg/L in both surface and groundwater had a higher incidence rate for pediatric cancers (brain and other CNS, leukemia, and lymphoma) compared to counties with surface and groundwater atrazine concentrations in the reference group (0.00 - 0.13 µg/L). Additionally, compared to counties with groundwater nitrate concentrations between 0 and 2 mg/L (reference group), counties with groundwater nitrate concentrations between 2.1 and 5 mg/L (group 2) had a higher incidence rate for pediatric brain and other CNS cancers (IRR=13.25; 95% CI: 13.00-13.50), leukemia (IRR=6.13; 95% CI: 6.02-6.26), and lymphoma (IRR=11.53; 95% CI: 11.32-11.75) after adjusting for all covariates in the model. While these findings do not indicate a causal relationship, they suggest that atrazine and nitrate may pose a significant risk relative to the genesis of pediatric brain and CNS cancers, leukemia, and lymphoma.
Feb 2022Published in GeoHealth volume 6 issue 2. 10.1029/2021GH000419