Season of birth, a surrogate of seasonal variation of environmental exposures, has
been associated with increased risk of several cancers. In the context of a Southern-Eastern
Europe (SEE) consortium, we explored the potential association of birth seasonality
with childhood (0-14 years) central nervous system (CNS) tumors. Primary CNS tumor
cases (n = 6,014) were retrieved from 16 population-based SEE registries (1983-2015).
Poisson regression and meta-analyses on birth season were performed in nine countries
with available live birth data (n = 4,987). Subanalyses by birth month, age, gender
and principal histology were also conducted. Children born during winter were at a
slightly increased risk of developing a CNS tumor overall [incidence rate ratio (IRR):
1.06, 95% confidence intervals (CI): 0.99-1.14], and of embryonal histology specifically
(IRR: 1.13, 95% CI: 1.01-1.27). The winter peak of embryonal tumors was higher among
boys (IRR: 1.24, 95% CI: 1.05-1.46), especially during the first 4 years of life (IRR:
1.33, 95% CI: 1.03-1.71). In contrast, boys <5 years born during summer seemed to
be at a lower risk of embryonal tumors (IRR: 0.73, 95% CI: 0.54-0.99). A clustering
of astrocytomas was also found among girls (0-14 years) born during spring (IRR: 1.23,
95% CI: 1.03-1.46). Although the present exploratory results are by no means definitive,
they provide some indications for age-, gender- and histology-related seasonal variations
of CNS tumors. Expansion of registration and linkage with cytogenetic reports could
refine if birth seasonality is causally associated with CNS tumors and shed light
into the complex pathophysiology of this lethal disease.
