Second primary tumors following a diagnosis of meningioma in Sweden, 1958-1997.

This study quantifies the risk of second primary tumors following a diagnosis of meningioma. 12,012 meningiomas and 926 second primary cancers were identified (ICD7, path code 461) between 1958 and 1997 using Swedish Cancer Registry data. Standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) and exact 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated. An elevated risk of any second primary cancer diagnosis (SIR = 1.2, 95% CI = 1.1-1.3) was observed. Elevated and statistically significant SIRs were observed for renal cancer (SIR = 1.6), melanoma (SIR = 1.7), thyroid cancer (SIR = 2.6) and brain tumors (SIR = 2.6). A consistent pattern of risk over time supports the evaluation of common risk factor profiles for renal, melanoma and thyroid cancers. Radiation exposures increase the risk of these rare tumors, so quantifying the cumulative and shared effects of environmental and treatment exposures is of further interest.