Skip to main content
PMC home page
Occupational and Environmental Medicine logoLink to Occupational and Environmental Medicine
. 1994 Jun;51(6):421–425. doi: 10.1136/oem.51.6.421

Incidence of cancer among anthophyllite asbestos miners in Finland.

L O Meurman 1, E Pukkala 1, M Hakama 1
PMCID: PMC1127999  PMID: 8044235

Abstract

A cohort of 736 male and 167 female workers of two anthophyllite mines in Finland was followed up through the Finnish Cancer Registry for cancer in 1953-91. Compared with the total cancer incidence of the east Finnish population, the men had a raised risk of total cancer (standardised incidence ratio (SIR) 1.7; 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 1.4-1.9), mainly attributable to an excess in lung cancer (SIR 2.8; 95% CI 2.2-3.6). The risk of lung cancer was somewhat higher among workers classified as heavily exposed (SIR 3.2; 95% CI 2.4-4.1) than among those moderately exposed (SIR 2.3; 95% CI 1.5-3.6) and the risk increased with increasing smoking and with increasing time of work with exposure. There were four cases of mesothelioma v 0.1 expected, all in men who smoked and had had a long and heavy asbestos exposure. Among women, a non-significant excess in total cancer (SIR 1.5; 95% CI 0.9-2.4) was found in the subgroup with heavy exposure to asbestos. Anthophyllite asbestos seems to have high potency in the carcinogenesis of lung cancer and low potency in carcinogenesis of mesothelioma in comparison with the other types of asbestos.

Full text

PDF

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Churg A., Wiggs B., Depaoli L., Kampe B., Stevens B. Lung asbestos content in chrysotile workers with mesothelioma. Am Rev Respir Dis. 1984 Dec;130(6):1042–1045. doi: 10.1164/arrd.1984.130.6.1042. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Dement J. M. Carcinogenicity of chrysotile asbestos: evidence from cohort studies. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 1991 Dec 31;643:15–23. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1991.tb24440.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Henderson V. L., Enterline P. E. Asbestos exposure: factors associated with excess cancer and respiratory disease mortality. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 1979;330:117–126. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1979.tb18712.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Huuskonen M. S., Ahlman K., Mattsson T., Tossavainen A. Asbestos disease in Finland. J Occup Med. 1980 Nov;22(11):751–754. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Karjalainen A., Meurman L. O., Pukkala E. Four cases of mesothelioma among Finnish anthophyllite miners. Occup Environ Med. 1994 Mar;51(3):212–215. doi: 10.1136/oem.51.3.212. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. McDonald J. C., Armstrong B., Case B., Doell D., McCaughey W. T., McDonald A. D., Sébastien P. Mesothelioma and asbestos fiber type. Evidence from lung tissue analyses. Cancer. 1989 Apr 15;63(8):1544–1547. doi: 10.1002/1097-0142(19890415)63:8<1544::aid-cncr2820630815>3.0.co;2-g. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. McDonald J. C. Cancer risks due to asbestos and man-made fibres. Recent Results Cancer Res. 1990;120:122–131. doi: 10.1007/978-3-642-84068-5_9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. McDonald J. C., Liddell F. D., Gibbs G. W., Eyssen G. E., McDonald A. D. Dust exposure and mortality in chrysotile mining, 1910-75. Br J Ind Med. 1980 Feb;37(1):11–24. doi: 10.1136/oem.37.1.11. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Meurman L. O., Kiviluoto R., Hakama M. Combined effect of asbestos exposure and tobacco smoking on Finnish anthophyllite miners and millers. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 1979;330:491–495. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1979.tb18750.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Meurman L. O., Kiviluoto R., Hakama M. Mortality and morbidity among the working population of anthophyllite asbestos miners in Finland. Br J Ind Med. 1974 Apr;31(2):105–112. doi: 10.1136/oem.31.2.105. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Pukkala E., Teppo L., Hakulinen T., Rimpelä M. Occupation and smoking as risk determinants of lung cancer. Int J Epidemiol. 1983 Sep;12(3):290–296. doi: 10.1093/ije/12.3.290. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Raffn E., Lynge E., Korsgaard B. Incidence of lung cancer by histological type among asbestos cement workers in Denmark. Br J Ind Med. 1993 Jan;50(1):85–89. doi: 10.1136/oem.50.1.85. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Seidman H., Selikoff I. J., Gelb S. K. Mortality experience of amosite asbestos factory workers: dose-response relationships 5 to 40 years after onset of short-term work exposure. Am J Ind Med. 1986;10(5-6):479–514. doi: 10.1002/ajim.4700100506. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Sluis-Cremer G. K., Liddell F. D., Logan W. P., Bezuidenhout B. N. The mortality of amphibole miners in South Africa, 1946-80. Br J Ind Med. 1992 Aug;49(8):566–575. doi: 10.1136/oem.49.8.566. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Tuomi T. Fibrous minerals in the lungs of mesothelioma patients: comparison between data on SEM, TEM, and personal interview information. Am J Ind Med. 1992;21(2):155–162. doi: 10.1002/ajim.4700210205. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Tuomi T., Segerberg-Konttinen M., Tammilehto L., Tossavainen A., Vanhala E. Mineral fiber concentration in lung tissue of mesothelioma patients in Finland. Am J Ind Med. 1989;16(3):247–254. doi: 10.1002/ajim.4700160303. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Wagner J. C., Berry G., Skidmore J. W., Timbrell V. The effects of the inhalation of asbestos in rats. Br J Cancer. 1974 Mar;29(3):252–269. doi: 10.1038/bjc.1974.65. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. de Klerk N. H., Armstrong B. K., Musk A. W., Hobbs M. S. Predictions of future cases of asbestos-related disease among former miners and millers of crocidolite in Western Australia. Med J Aust. 1989 Dec 4;151(11-12):616–620. doi: 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1989.tb139629.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Occupational and Environmental Medicine are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES