We examined whether antenatal stress following maternal bereavement increased the risk of childhood cancer.
3 Bereavement increases the risk of mortality, 4 and the risk is even higher after bereavement by suicide.
Although it is unlikely that bereavement increases risks for all childhood cancers, the observed associations suggest a role of hormonal disturbance perhaps as a general promoter.
They suggest, paradoxically, that good health before bereavement increases the adverse impact of bereavement rather than providing protection, but these findings are limited by sample size or limited information on comorbid conditions (7, 8).
This finding is comparable to the finding in a previous study, which showed that a retrospective account of a history of depression before parental bereavement increased the risk for depression in the 9 months following the death of a parent, which in turn increased depression risk between 9 and 21 months [ 34].
We hypothesized that prenatal stress following maternal bereavement may increase the risk of ED in infants and toddlers.
Our findings tend to favor an explanation that, at least in the early period after bereavement, the increase in mortality is mediated through acute or short-term events, with all older people being vulnerable, irrespective of pre-existing comorbid conditions.
As internalizing problems already increased after the first bereavement a further increase could be difficult to detect because of a ceiling effect.
John Ruskay, chief executive of UJA-Federation of New York, said, "We will provide more cash assistance, more food and rent, be able to provide emergency shelter to greater numbers, increase bereavement counseling, grow services to victims of domestic violence and support job counseling and placement for former substance abusers".
The most plausible explanation for most excess mortality after bereavement is an increase in unexpected cardiac and respiratory deaths.
