A Story of Health Wins CDC Communications Award

The National Center for Environmental Health (NCEH) and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) have honored A Story of Health multimedia eBook/continuing education course with the ”Excellence in communications” award. NCEH and ATSDR are agencies of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The award was given at the annual NCEH/ATSDR Honor Awards on February 3, 2015 to the Story of Health team for excellence in communication for the development of a medical education product that highlights the importance of environmental health. These awards are given annually to recognize excellence in product development and employee performance. The eBook was designed to harness the power of storytelling to improve environmental health literacy for health professionals, policy makers and health advocates. It was developed by a team from ATSDR, the Collaborative on Health and the Environment (CHE), the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, California EPA (OEHHA), the Science and Environmental Health Network (SEHN), and the Western States Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit (PEHSU). CIRCLE Core Leader, Mark Miller, was a primary author and developer of the eBook.  CIRCLE investigator, Vickie Leonard was also a contributing author.  Other CIRCLE investigators provided content — including informational videos — which was featured in eBook. The first installment of the eBook, with chapters on asthma, developmental disabilities and childhood leukemia, is available to download for free on the WSPEHSU web site. Health professionals can register for free continuing education credits (CE) through the CDC. A fourth story on infertility and reproductive health is in development. The eBook has been downloaded by over 3000, with over 2400 CE registrations. Feedback from CE registrants has been overwhelmingly positive.

READ MORE


CIRCLE Names New External Advisory Committee

CIRCLE is excited to announce the new External Advisory Committee.  The name of each member, his or her title, affiliation, and specialty are listed below:

  • Rodney Dietert, Ph.D. Dr. Dietert is a Professor at the Cornell University, College of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Immunotoxicology.  Dr. Dietert will provide his expertise in immunotoxicology and mouse models.
  • Raphael Gottardo, PhD. Dr. Gottardo is a Member and Associate Head of the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Division Program in Biostatistics, Bioinformatics and Epidemiology at Fred Hutch. Dr. Gottardo provides expertise in biostatistics.
  • Jill Johnston, Ph.D., Dr. Johnston is an Assistant Professor at the University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine, Department Preventative Medicine. Dr. Johnston will provide her expertise in research translation and community outreach.
  • Dean Jones, Ph.D. Dr. Jones is a Professor at the Emory University, Department of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine.  Dr. Jones will provide his expertise in exposure biology.
  • Kari Nadeau, M.D., Ph.D.  Dr. Nadeau is a Professor at Stanford University, Department of Pediatrics, Division of Allergy, Immunology, and Rheumatology.  Dr. Nadeau will provide her expertise in pediatric immunology and epigenetics.
READ MORE


Parental Occupational Exposure and Childhood Leukemia

In a manuscript that has been conditionally accepted for publication in the peer-reviewed scientific journal, Environmental Research, CIRCLE Director, Catherine Metayer, and CIRCLE investigator, Alice Kang, investigated the role that parents’ exposures to chemicals at work play in their children’s health. Dr. Metayer and Ms. Kang used 19 task-based job modules to examine the relationship between occupational exposure to organic solvents and the risk of leukemia in the workers’ offspring.  The study population was comprised of Hispanic (48%) and non-Hispanic (52%) children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL; n=670), acute myeloid leukemia (AML; n=104), and controls (n=1021), who were enrolled in California from 2000-2008. Among children with non-Hispanic fathers, none of the exposures evaluated were associated with risks of ALL and AML.  In contrast, exposure to any organic solvents in Hispanic fathers was associated with an increased risk of childhood ALL.  Exposure to chlorinated hydrocarbons was more strongly related to leukemia risk than exposure to aromatic hydrocarbons, glycol ethers, or other hydrocarbon mixtures. The investigators also observed an increased risk of ALL with exposure to combustion exhausts. Moderately elevated risks of ALL were seen with exposure to metals, paints, and wood dust, although these relationships were not statistically significant. Overall, the prevalence of exposures to chemicals was low in mothers, except for disinfectants, and no associations were reported for risk of childhood ALL and AML. In conclusion, the authors reported associations between paternal occupational exposures to chlorinated hydrocarbons and combustion exhausts, and risk of ALL in Hispanic children.

READ MORE