Cancer risk to children in the context of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's cancer guidelines (U.S. EPA, 2005) includes both early-life exposures that may result in the occurrence of cancer during childhood and early-life exposures that may contribute to cancers later in life. The National Research Council (NRC, 1994) recommended that 'EPA should assess risks to infants and children whenever it appears that their risks might be greater than those of adults.' This document focuses on cancer risks from early-life exposure compared with those from exposures occurring later in life. Evaluating childhood cancer and childhood exposures resulting in cancer later in life are related, but separable, issues.

EPA/630/R-03-003F Includes bibliographical references (R-1-R-10)

Introduction -- Procedures -- Data sources for animal studies -- Evaluating the mode of action of carcinogens -- Quantitative methods -- Ionizing radiation -- Results -- Qualitative evaluation of the database -- Quantitative evaluation of the database -- Carcinogens with a mutagenic mode of action -- Carcinogens with modes of action other than mutagenicity -- Ionizing radiation -- Discussion -- Guidance for assessing cancer risks from early-life exposure -- Combining lifestage differences in exposure and dose-response when assessing carcinogen risk - some examples for carcinogens that act through a mutagenic mode of actions -- Calculating lifetime risks associated with lifetime exposures -- Calculating lifetime risks associated with less than lifetime exposures -- Appendix A: Tables -- References.