Search

Copyright of EPPO Bulletin is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Objectives: To explore the time trend and geographical distribution of childhood leukaemia incidence over the territory of the Italian region of Sardinia., Setting: All hospitals departments, diagnostic centres and social security agencies in Sardinia were regularly screened in 1974-2003 to identify, register and review the diagnoses of incident cases of haematological malignancies (HM)., Participants: The whole child population aged 0-14 resident in Sardinia., Primary and Secondary Outcome Measures: Incidence and time trend of childhood HM and childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) over the study period, and use of Bayesian methods to plot the probability of areas with excess incidence on the regional map., Results: Overall, 675 HM cases, including 378 ALL cases, occurred among children aged 0-14 years resident in Sardinia in 1974-2003, with an incidence rate of 6.97×10 -5 (95% CI 6.47 to 7.51) and 3.85×10 -5 (95% CI 3.48 to 4.26), respectively. Incidence of HM and ALL showed an upward trend along the study period especially among females. Three communes out of the 356 existing in 1974, namely Ittiri, Villa San Pietro and Carbonia, stand out as areas with excess incidence of HM and ALL in particular and another, Carloforte, for ALL only., Conclusions: Our results might serve as convincing arguments for extending the coverage of routine cancer registration over the whole Sardinian population, while prompting further research on the genetic and environmental determinants in the areas at risk., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2020. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Background: Many biological and inflammatory markers have been proposed as having a prognostic value at diagnosis of Hodgkin lymphoma (HL), but very few have been validated in paediatric patients. We explored the significance of these markers in a large population of 769 affected children., Patients and Methods: By using the database of patients enrolled in A.I.E.O.P. (Associazione Italiana di Emato-Oncologia Pediatrica) trial LH2004 for paediatric HL, we identified 769 consecutive patients treated with curative intent from 1st June 2004 to 1st April 2014 with ABVD (doxorubicin, bleomycin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine), or hybrid COPP/ABV (cyclophosphamide, vincristine, prednisone, procarbazine, doxorubicin, bleomycin and vinblastine) regimens., Results: On multivariate analysis with categorical forms, the 5-year freedom from progression survival was significantly lower in patients with stage IV or elevated value of platelets, eosinophils and ferritin at diagnosis. Furthermore, stage IV and eosinophils seem to maintain their predictive value independently of interim (after IV cycles of chemotherapy) positron emission tomography., Conclusion: Using the combination of four simple markers such as stage IV and elevated levels of platelets, ferritin and eosinophils, it is possible to classify the patients into subgroups with very different outcomes., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The whiteflies Bemisia tabaci and Trialeurodes vaporariorum and their associated viruses constitute a major threat to tomato crops in the Mediterranean region. Continuous host availability and mild climate are thought to be among the factors contributing to the outbreaks of whitefly-related problems in this area. We carried out a year-long survey to investigate the relative contribution of different plants, agricultural and not, and indoor/outdoor crops as hosts of the two whiteflies and the tomato yellow leaf curl disease (TYLCD) in a multi-crop system typical of tomato growing areas in southern Sardinia (S. Margherita di Pula, Cagliari, Italy). For this purpose, during 2005 we monitored whitefly population trends in different plots of a horticulture farm, evaluated seasonal changes in the infestation density of the two pests on the most represented host species and assessed the incidence of TYLCD on tomato crops and susceptible weeds. Whitefly catches on yellow sticky traps were found to be higher inside et along the external perimeter of greenhouses compared to open field crops or uncultivated areas, thus suggesting significant adult movement between indoor and outdoor patches. In most plots flight activity increased between late spring and late summer, peaking in July. The number of immatures of the two whitefly species showed similar dynamics, but while T. vaporariorum reached the highest densities in greenhouse tomato crops in June, peak levels of 8. tabaci were recorded between July and August in outdoor horticultural crops and weeds. The occurrence of TYLCD was detected all year round on weed hosts, but the highest number of infected plants was observed in June on long cycle tomato crops. The present survey has demonstrated the contribution of non-agricultural plants the maintenance of tomato yellow leaf curl disease in the study site. However, tomato crops established in summer as major reservoirs of TYLCD-associated viruses and presumably played a key role in the spread of the disease to autumn tomato crops. The implementation of a crop-free period between successive susceptible crops, or at least the avoiding of whitefly movement through greenhouse openings and the complete destruction of plants after final harvest, would probably reduce the severity of TYLCD epidemics in this area.

Tomato yellow leaf curl Sardinia virus (TYLCSV) and Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) are among the most virulent pathogens of greenhouse tomatoes in Sardinia (Italy). To investigate the relationship between seasonal population trends of the vector Bemisia tabaci and the dynamics of TYLCD spread to susceptible crops, between May and October 2007 we carried out a survey in a tomato growing area located in the south of the island. On three farms specialized in the production of fresh market tomatoes we monitored, outside commercial greenhouses, the following parameters related to TYLCD epidemiology: mean weekly catches of the whiteflies B. tabaci and Trialeurodes voporariorum on yellow sticky traps, ratio between the two whitefly species and proportion of B. tabaci adults carrying TYLCSV/TYLCV in adult samples collected on hosts not susceptible to the disease, proportion of tomato plants infected by TYLCSV/TYLCV after a two-week exposure to open field conditions. Generally speaking, the flight activity of whiteflies increased during spring, reached a peak in May or June and gradually declined in summer. At the beginning of the survey, T. vaporariorum was found to be the prevalent species, but after a shift in composition of whitefly populations during July, B. tabaci became predominant. While the percentage of vector adults carrying the viral agents of the disease was relatively high up to July, with maximum values ranging between 14 and 25%, during the following months it decreased to less than 5%. The incidence of TYLCD in the plants exposed outside the greenhouses showed a similar trend in the sites surveyed, with two peaks roughly coinciding with the beginning and end of summer. Therefore, two distinct phases of TYLCD spread were observed: from spring to midsummer when the disease was transmitted by low 8. tabaci populations with relatively high proportions of virus carriers; from midsummer to autumn, when the disease was spread by larger vector populations with low percentages of individuals carrying the viruses. Further studies are necessary to gain a better understanding of the interactions among B. tabaci biotypes, TYLCSV/TYLCV and their hosts.

Aim and Background: Public concern on an increased incidence of childhood leukemia in SW Sardinia prompted the authors to an epidemiological investigation., Methods: Incident childhood neoplasms observed in the Cagliari province (Sardinia--Italy) in 1974-1989 were registered. Expected cases of the most frequent childhood cancers were calculated for each town, based on the sex-and age-specific incidence rates in the province., Results: An excess risk of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) was observed in Carbonia, a town located in the SW part of the province. The risk was highest in 1983-85, when 7 cases occurred versus 0.8 expected (RR = 8.7; 95% C.I. = 4.6, 16.3). No spatial clustering of ALL cases was observed within the town., Conclusions: A significantly higher than expected incidence of childhood ALL was observed in the town of Carbonia in 1983-85. In alternative to chance, possible exposure to environmental pollutants from a near industrial settlement is discussed as the cause of the observed excess, but it is far to be proven. Other hypotheses, including a viral infection in a population with increased susceptibility, as suggested for new urban settlements, cannot be discarded.

Childhood cancer incidence, mortality and relative survival rates have been estimated in the province of Cagliari for the years 1982-86. Cases were collected from pediatric and non pediatric units operating either in the province or elsewhere. Deaths were identified through the registry offices of municipal administrations. A total of 151 cases were identified, corresponding to an incidence rate of 115.0 per million. Survival rate at three years of diagnosis was 63.3%.