You save their life, and that's wonderful. Each year, cancer kills more children than asthma, diabetes, cystic fibrosis, congenital anomalies and AIDS combined. Cancer remains the big bad wolf of childhood illnesses. No, you can't catch it. Nor is there a long list of preventive measures.
Researchers basically remain nonplussed by what causes cancer in children at all.
A few specific and rare types of childhood cancer are linked to genetic disorders. Irradiating women during pregnancy, through procedures such as X-rays, is considered a risk factor. It gets murkier after that. Electromagnetic fields, such as those created by powerful overhead transmission lines, have been targeted and rejected as suspect. Many more studies suggest a link between pesticides and childhood cancer, but such research is problematic, said Morrison.