Occupational Risk Factors for Bladder Cancer: Results from a Case-Control Study in Montreal, Quebec, Canada

• Published in: American journal of epidemiology 1994-12, Vol.140 (12), p.1061-1080
• Main Authors: Siemiatycki, Jack, Dewar, Ronald, Nadon, Louise, Gérin, Michel
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; automobile driving; automobile exhaust; benzo(a)pyrene; Biological and medical sciences; bladder neoplasms; Carcinoma - chemically induced; Carcinoma - epidemiology; Case-Control Studies; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Female; fossil fuels; Humans; Logistic Models; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; mineral oil; Multivariate Analysis; Nephrology. Urinary tract diseases; Occupational Exposure; Odds Ratio; paint; Quebec - epidemiology; Risk Factors; Time Factors; Tumors of the urinary system; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms - chemically induced; Urinary Bladder Neoplasms - epidemiology; Urinary tract. Prostate gland
• ISSN: 0002-9262; 1476-6256
• DOI: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a117207

A population-based case-control study of the associations between various cancers and occupational exposures was carried out in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Between 1979 and 1986, 484 persons with pathologically confirmed cases of bladder cancer and 1,879 controls with cancers at other sites were interviewed, as was a series of 533 population controls. The job histories of these subjects were evaluated by a team of chemist/hygienists for evidence of exposure to a list of 294 workplace chemicals, and information on relevant non-occupational confounders was obtained. On the basis of results of preliminary analyses and literature review, 19 occupations, 11 industries, and 23 substances were selected for in-depth multivariate analysis. Logistic regression analyses were carried out to estimate the odds ratio between each of these occupational circumstances and bladder cancer. There was weak evidence that the following substances may be risk factors for bladder cancer: natural gas combustion products, aromatic amines, cadmium compounds, photographic products, acrylic fibers, polyethylene, titanium dioxide, and chlorine. Among the substances evaluated which showed no evidence of an association were benzo(a)pyrene, leather dust, and formaldehyde. Several occupations and industries were associated with bladder cancer, including motor vehicle drivers and textile dyers.