Childhood Cancer & the Environment Science and Community Outreach/Social Media Videos

Science Videos

Drs. Catherine Metayer and Joe Wiemels of the Children’s Integrative Research on Childhood Leukemia and the Environment  (CIRCLE) at the University of California, Berkeley, whose research has been key to informing the content of the Childhood Cancer & the Environment Project, have recorded a series of science videos on the following topics:

• How diet can affect childhood cancer risk – Dr. Metayer covers research on population-based studies conducted in several countries which indicate a healthy diet during the critical periods of a child’s development–from preconception, pregnancy, to early years of life–is important in reducing the risk of several types of childhood cancers. This video also presents strong evidence supporting the beneficial role of breastfeeding in preventing acute leukemia, the most common cancer in children.

• Childhood Leukemia and the Immune System – Dr. Wiemels discusses how exposure and reactions to common infections can influence a child’s risk of leukemia. “Training” immune systems with measured responses to normal infections and vaccinations can reduce leukemia risk, with the possible exception of early infection with cytomegalovirus which is associated with increased risk
• Pesticides and Risks of Childhood Cancers – In this video,  Dr. Metayer presents data from several epidemiologic studies around the world showing how pre- and postnatal exposures to residential and agricultural pesticides can increase the risk of developing certain types of childhood cancers 
• Descriptive Epidemiology and Biology of Childhood Cancers – Drs. Metayer and Wiemels show how the burden of childhood cancers varies by racial and ethnic group, suggesting the contribution of both the environment and genetic susceptibility 
• Indoor and Outdoor Air Pollution and Childhood Cancers – Dr. Metayer discusses how air pollution contains known carcinogens that have been linked to increased risk of several cancers in children
• Germline Genetics and Childhood Cancers – In this video Dr. Wiemels describes the two main types of genetic studies and what type of mutations such studies can discover. We also consider how an environmental exposure to tobacco can impact risk to leukemia
• Biology of Carcinogenesis and Childhood Cancers – This video Dr. Wiemels discusses how carcinogens work via mutagenic and non-mutagenic pathways 

Community Outreach/Social Media Videos

Miranda Kahn, a Los Angeles-based paper artist and stop motion animator, has developed several very short videos on ways to reduce the risk of childhood cancer in our children before conception and early in pregnancy. These videos are intended for use on social media and in presentations to communities.

The first video is based on her 10-minute shadow puppet video Love in the Time of Toxicants.

• 2-minute extract video from Love in the Time of Toxicants (English | Spanish)

Kahn also created an original stop motion animation educational/social media video highlighting the benefits of proper nutrition and risks of pesticides, and solvents/VOCs. The videos are made with original hand-cut paper and are available as a single two-minute video and broken down into one-minute sections.

Animated new videos include:

• Original animation on Nutrition and Risks of Pesticides and Solvents/VOCs. (English | Spanish )

Individual excerpted topics:

• The importance of proper nutrition in preventing disease (English | Spanish )
• Avoiding exposure to pesticides (English | Spanish )
• Avoiding exposure to solvents/VOCs (English | Spanish )