Peer-reviewed article
Risk of Neurodevelopmental Disorders in the Offspring of Young Female Cancer Survivors.
Kyujin Choi, Jihye Heo, Soo-Young Oh, Jonghan Yu, Juyoung Sung et al. ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study examined the risk of neurodevelopmental disorders in children born to female cancer survivors under age 40 using Korean national health insurance data. Children born to cancer survivors had a higher overall risk of neurodevelopmental disorders, including cerebral palsy, developmental delay, and seizures, compared to children born to women without cancer history. The risk was highest when mothers were diagnosed with cancer during pregnancy. However, the increased risk was not significant for births occurring more than 5 years after cancer diagnosis.
Key points
- Children born to young female cancer survivors had elevated overall risk of neurodevelopmental disorders (HR = 1.10)
- Specific elevated risks included cerebral palsy (HR = 1.38), developmental delay (HR = 1.16), and seizures (HR = 1.06)
- Risk was particularly high when mothers were diagnosed with cancer during pregnancy (HR = 1.26)
- Risk was not statistically significant for births more than 5 years after cancer diagnosis (HR = 1.07)
- Study included 19,474 children born to cancer survivors matched with 58,422 controls
Limitations
This is an observational retrospective study using health insurance claims data, so causation cannot be established. The study cannot determine whether the neurodevelopmental risks are due to cancer itself, cancer treatments (chemotherapy, radiation, surgery), or other maternal health factors associated with cancer.
Abstract
This study aimed to examine the risk of neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) in cJihye Heohildren born to female cancer survivors under 40 years old. Using nationwide retrospective data from the Korean National Health Insurance Service between January 1, 2005, and December 31, 2019, we included 19,474 children born to female cancer survivors under 40 years old. Propensity-score matching (1:3) with 58,422 controls born to women without cancer was conducted. NDDs were identified using ICD-10 codes. Hazard ratios (HRs) were calculated to assess the relative risk. Children born to cancer survivors had a higher overall risk of NDDs (HR = 1.10; 95% CI 1.05-1.15), with specific elevated risks for cerebral palsy (HR = 1.38; 95% CI 1.05-1.81), developmental delay (HR = 1.16; 95% CI 1.06-1.26), and epileptic and febrile seizures (HR = 1.06; 95% CI 1.01-1.12). The risk was particularly elevated in children whose mothers were diagnosed with cancer during pregnancy (HR = 1.26; 95% CI 1.08-1.47). However, for births occurring more than 5 years after the cancer diagnosis, the difference in NDDs risk was not statistically significant (HR = 1.07; 95% CI 0.98-1.16). The offspring of young female cancer survivors had an increased risk of NDDs compared with the control group. When young female cancer survivors desire pregnancy, healthcare providers should offer appropriate counseling and surveillance for potential adverse NDDs in their offspring.
Findings the Hub has extracted
Each claim below is labelled by its type of design and links back to this report.
- Intervention
- Standard cancer treatment and pregnancy management for young female cancer survivors
- Population
- 19,474 children born to female cancer survivors under age 40 in South Korea, matched with 58,422 controls born to women without cancer history
Key finding
Children born to cancer survivors had higher overall NDD risk (HR = 1.10; 95% CI 1.05-1.15)