Fears that growth hormone treatment usually given to under sized children could trigger leukemia have been confirmed in a major American study.
The risk of leukemia almost doubles among those who take growth hormones, and this nearly trebles if taken over a longer term.
The findings, based on a study of 6284 recipients of the treatment from 1963 to 1985 in the US, revealed that six members of the study group developed leukemia against an expected level of 2.26 cases.
The study, led by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, confirms fears first raised in Japan in 1988 that the hormone could be triggering leukemia.