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The latest study was carried out by Dr Gerald Draper and colleagues from the Childhood Cancer Research Group at Oxford University, and Dr John Swanson, a scientific adviser at National Grid Transco.
It looked at more than 29,000 children with cancer, including 9,700 with leukaemia, born between 1962 and 1995, and a control group of healthy youngsters in England and Wales.
The researchers measured the distance from children’s home addresses at birth from the nearest high voltage power line.
They found that 64 children with leukaemia lived within 200m of the line, while 258 lived between 200-600m away.
Overall, youngsters living within 200m of the lines were about 70% more likely to develop leukaemia, and those living between 200 and 600m away about 20% more likely to develop leukaemia than those who lived beyond 600m from high voltage pylons.
Although the trend was definite, the researchers said they could not reasonably explain why it occurred.
For this reason, they caution that it might be down to factors other than the pylons themselves, such as the type of people who live near pylons or the general environment where pylons are located, which they plan to investigate.

Living too close to overhead power lines appears to increase the risk of childhood leukaemia, researchers say.
A major study found children who had lived within 200m of high voltage lines at birth had a 70% higher risk of leukaemia than those 600m or more away.
But the Oxford University team stressed that there are no accepted biological reasons for the results and that they may, therefore, be chance.
Alternatively, it may be down to the environments where pylons are located.
And they said it did not resolve the debate about whether it was unsafe to live next to power lines.
Around 1% of homes in the UK are estimated to be within 200m of high voltage National Grid power lines.
The researchers said their findings showed living in such close proximity to power lines at birth could account for five extra cases of childhood leukaemia in a total of around 400 that occur in a year – a total of 1%.
The British Medical Journal study did not look at level of exposure to magnetic fields.
But other scientists who have considered the issue have suggested that low frequency magnetic fields, such as those caused by the production of electricity, could possibly be linked to cancer.
However, others have disputed this link. And experts agree that there are likely to be many factors involved in leukaemia, including genes and the environment.
Even if the apparent risk was found to be real, the number of cases of leukaemia that would result would be very few, said the authors.

The programme aims to challenge some of the “negative stereotyping” that leads some children from poorer backgrounds to believe that universities and certain careers are out of reach for them.
Children will be offered career-related learning in a range of areas to raise awareness of what they can achieve.
It is hoped this will lay the foundations for them to make good subject choices in secondary schools and inspire them to do well.
As part of the new careers strategy, parents will be urged to think while their children are still in primary school about what jobs they might want to do.
75% saying they want to go to university.
The Department for Children, Schools and Families wants teachers and parents to build on this to get children thinking about higher education, especially those from homes where no members of their family have been to university before.
The department stresses the scheme is not about helping children decide what job they want to do, but showing them what can be possible so they fulfil their potential.
There will also be more help for disadvantaged and disabled young people in accessing work experience and every young person is to get a careers mentor.
Children are also to be offered good information, advice and guidance online on Facebook, YouTube and other social networking sites.

In recent weeks the media regulator Ofcom has begun an inquiry into premium-rate phone lines on TV contests following allegations that some shows have misled callers.
Ofcom has had two complaints about the Joseph choirs competition but as websites are outside its purview it had referred them back to the BBC.
In online forums, comments include: “My respect for the BBC has plummeted beyond belief!” and “The whole thing has been one disaster after another, only hope they apologise on the TV show to the thousands of kids who feel let down.”
A BBC spokesperson said that as well as increasing the website’s capacity to cope with the huge amount of hits it was getting, the deadline had been extended – it ended at 1500BST on Friday 25 May.
“Extras measures were also added on the website including a clarification of how to rate the choirs and a registration system to assist in managing the process.
“Once the verification process has been completed the top twenty, who go forward for judging by the panel, will be announced on Thursday 31 May.”
Joseph was written as a school musical and remains enormously popular with children.
It was first performed in 1968 but it is estimated that there are still nearly 500 school or amateur productions each year in the UK alone.

Approval for a major upgrade of pylons through the Cairngorms would blight the face of the national park, according to a new campaign group.
Cairngorms Revolt Against Pylons has urged the Scottish Executive not to “rubber stamp” the 67m-tall pylons.
The route, which cuts through the area where the BBC’s Monarch of the Glen is filmed, is part of a planned 180-mile upgrade between Beauly and Denny.
An executive spokesman said it had not yet received a formal application.
The campaign group said the electricity transmission pylons were each the size of the Statue of Liberty.
has also called on energy firm Scottish and Southern Energy to bury the line underground where it passes through Cairngorm National Park.
Spokesman Roy Tylden-Wright said: “If the Scottish Executive rubber stamp these plans it will be failing in its duty to protect Scotland’s second national park.
“Imagine how America’s image abroad would suffer if the government agreed to the construction of monster pylons through Yellowstone National Park?”
Mr Tylden-Wright said that at twice the height of existing pylons in the Highlands the planned route would dominate the park entrances at Kinlochlaggan, Drumochter Pass and the Corrieyairack Pass.
He said this was one of Europe’s last wild landscapes and warned the project could have a disastrous impact on tourism.

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About 250 people marched to the Wallace Monument in Stirling to protest against plans to erect huge pylons across Scotland.
Opponents used the 700th anniversary of William Wallace’s death to voice concerns about the pylons which they said would ruin historic landscapes.
The Scottish and Southern Energy project has been designed to take power from planned new wind farms.
The campaigners are calling for a public inquiry.
The protesters, including Fife MSP Brian Monteith, marched across fields which they said would be crossed by the new pylons.
They also hovered a large balloon at about 200ft above the ground, the same height as some of the planned pylons.
One of the organisers, Alison Grave, said: “We had people there from Lewis to Lanark.
“We want to let people know what’s being proposed for Scotland.
“There are about 250 wind farm applications in the planning system already. That is utter madness without having an energy strategy in place.”
Scottish and Southern Energy has drawn up plans to run the 400,000-volt transmission line 137 miles (220km) from Beauly in the Highlands to Denny in central Scotland.
It said the £320m cable was needed to meet green energy targets set by ministers and the EU.

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Five would-be West End stars from Wales are among the 24 finalists to play Nancy and Oliver for the BBC’s new musical talent show I’d Do Anything.
The three Nancy hopefuls include Tara Bethan, 24, from Rhyl, who was in the Welsh language soap Rownd a Rownd.
The two hoping to play Oliver include Gwion, 11, from Carmarthenshire, who would love to act opposite Gary Oldman.
They are hoping to be cast in a revival of the musical Oliver! And will face their first public vote next Saturday.
All five are hoping to follow fellow Welsh singer Connie Fisher who went on to star as Maria in The Sound of Music after winning a similar TV show.
Tara has just completed a nine month contract on the children’s soap which is based around a children’s newspaper round.
Her father is an ex-pro wrestler and she says her worst job was working for her father’s company when she had to load and unload the wrestling ring.

A presentation was made by SSE officials and objectors also had the opportunity to make their views known.
John Rennilson, the council’s planning director, said: “Although the committee recognises that a high voltage electricity transmission system is key for the
development of renewable energy in the Highlands, they did not feel that the proposal presented to them today was acceptable.”
The committee said it also wanted to wait for a government report on the possible link associated with high voltage overhead power lines and cases of childhood
leukaemia.
Mr Rennilson said alternatives to the power line – such as laying it underground – must be explored at the earliest opportunity.
Mr Rennilson said: “This is an important issue and we cannot afford to tread water until the public inquiry in the autumn.”
SSE head of sustainable development, Dr Keith Maclean, said under-grounding would cost much more and mean environmental and maintenance problems.
But he said the option of burying some sections had not been ruled out.
Dr Maclean said: “The under-grounding issue is one that always causes a problem at this voltage.
“Most people’s view of an underground line is something under the pavement or under the road, but we are talking about a development in itself the size of a motorway.
“That has serious implications on the environment. It also has serious cost implications.”
He added: “We make quite clear in our report there are conditions whereby we would look at under-grounding.
“Our belief with the application was we had not got to that stage.
“We have to listen to what has been said from the consultation process and we will talk to the main stakeholders to look at all options to overcome the remaining
concerns that they have.”