Skip to main content
PMC home page
Occupational and Environmental Medicine logoLink to Occupational and Environmental Medicine
. 1998 Jun;55(6):387–392. doi: 10.1136/oem.55.6.387

Lung and bladder cancer in a Norwegian municipality with iron and steel producing industry: population based case-control studies

T K Grimsrud, H Langseth, A Engeland, A Andersen
PMCID: PMC1757594  PMID: 9764098

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the influence of occupation on the rising incidence of lung and bladder cancer among men in a Norwegian municipality where an iron and steel plant constituted the key industry between 1955 and 1989. METHODS: Based on the lung cancer cases reported to the Cancer Registry of Norway from 1980 to 1992 a population based case-control study was performed, including 86 cases and 196 controls. Information on occupations and smoking habits was collected through interviews and from the personnel files from the industrial plants. A case-control study on bladder cancer with 52 cases and 156 controls was carried out to cast light on the role of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). RESULTS: An odds ratio (OR) for lung cancer of 2.9 (95% confidence interval (95% CI) 1.2 to 6.7) was associated with exposure to PAHs. Based on data from personnel files, increased risk of lung cancer (OR 2.8 95% CI 1.1 to 7.0) was associated with work experience in the pig iron department at the ironworks. A non- significant OR of 1.8 was associated with exposure to asbestos. Bladder cancer was not associated with exposure to PAHs at the iron, steel, and coke plant, or with experience from any of the production departments at the plant. CONCLUSIONS: One fifth of the lung cancer cases were attributed to exposure to PAHs or asbestos. More than 80% of the cases of lung cancer were attributed to tobacco smoking. The cancer risk in the pig iron department may be due to a combination of exposures to PAH, asbestos, or dust of mixed composition.

 

Full Text

The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (116.0 KB).

Selected References

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

  1. Bakke P., Gulsvik A., Eide G. E., Hanoa R. Smoking habits and lifetime occupational exposure to gases or dusts, including asbestos and quartz, in a Norwegian community. Scand J Work Environ Health. 1990 Jun;16(3):195–202. doi: 10.5271/sjweh.1794. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Blatter B. M., Roeleveld N., Zielhuis G. A., Verbeek A. L. Assessment of occupational exposure in a population based case-control study: comparing postal questionnaires with personal interviews. Occup Environ Med. 1997 Jan;54(1):54–59. doi: 10.1136/oem.54.1.54. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Blot W. J., Brown L. M., Pottern L. M., Stone B. J., Fraumeni J. F., Jr Lung cancer among long-term steel workers. Am J Epidemiol. 1983 Jun;117(6):706–716. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a113604. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Bonassi S., Merlo F., Pearce N., Puntoni R. Bladder cancer and occupational exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Int J Cancer. 1989 Oct 15;44(4):648–651. doi: 10.1002/ijc.2910440415. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Bruzzi P., Green S. B., Byar D. P., Brinton L. A., Schairer C. Estimating the population attributable risk for multiple risk factors using case-control data. Am J Epidemiol. 1985 Nov;122(5):904–914. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a114174. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Engeland A. Trends in the incidence of smoking-associated cancers in Norway, 1954-93. Int J Cancer. 1996 Sep 27;68(1):39–46. doi: 10.1002/(SICI)1097-0215(19960927)68:1<39::AID-IJC8>3.0.CO;2-Y. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Finkelstein M. M., Boulard M., Wilk N. Increased risk of lung cancer in the melting department of a second Ontario steel manufacturer. Am J Ind Med. 1991;19(2):183–194. doi: 10.1002/ajim.4700190206. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Finkelstein M. M. Lung cancer among steelworkers in Ontario. Am J Ind Med. 1994 Oct;26(4):549–557. doi: 10.1002/ajim.4700260412. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Herrmann N. Retrospective information from questionnaires. I. Comparability of primary respondents and their next-of-kin. Am J Epidemiol. 1985 Jun;121(6):937–947. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a114064. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Herrmann N. Retrospective information from questionnaires. II. Intrarater reliability and comparison of questionnaire types. Am J Epidemiol. 1985 Jun;121(6):948–953. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a114065. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Hilt B., Langård S., Lund-Larsen P. G., Lien J. T. Previous asbestos exposure and smoking habits in the county of Telemark, Norway--a cross-sectional population study. Scand J Work Environ Health. 1986 Dec;12(6):561–566. doi: 10.5271/sjweh.2106. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Hinds M. W., Kolonel L. N., Lee J. Application of a job-exposure matrix to a case-control study of lung cancer. J Natl Cancer Inst. 1985 Aug;75(2):193–197. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Kjuus H., Skjaerven R., Langård S., Lien J. T., Aamodt T. A case-referent study of lung cancer, occupational exposures and smoking. I. Comparison of title-based and exposure-based occupational information. Scand J Work Environ Health. 1986 Jun;12(3):193–202. doi: 10.5271/sjweh.2158. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Kjuus H., Skjaerven R., Langård S., Lien J. T., Aamodt T. A case-referent study of lung cancer, occupational exposures and smoking. I. Comparison of title-based and exposure-based occupational information. Scand J Work Environ Health. 1986 Jun;12(3):193–202. doi: 10.5271/sjweh.2158. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Kjuus H., Skjaerven R., Langård S., Lien J. T., Aamodt T. A case-referent study of lung cancer, occupational exposures and smoking. II. Role of asbestos exposure. Scand J Work Environ Health. 1986 Jun;12(3):203–209. doi: 10.5271/sjweh.2157. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Kristensen P., Andersen A., Irgens L. M., Laake P., Bye A. S. Incidence and risk factors of cancer among men and women in Norwegian agriculture. Scand J Work Environ Health. 1996 Feb;22(1):14–26. doi: 10.5271/sjweh.104. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Kvåle G., Bjelke E., Heuch I. Occupational exposure and lung cancer risk. Int J Cancer. 1986 Feb 15;37(2):185–193. doi: 10.1002/ijc.2910370204. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Lerchen M. L., Samet J. M. An assessment of the validity of questionnaire responses provided by a surviving spouse. Am J Epidemiol. 1986 Mar;123(3):481–489. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a114263. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Lindstedt G., Sollenberg J. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the occupational environment: with special reference to benzo[a]pyrene measurements in Swedish industry. Scand J Work Environ Health. 1982 Mar;8(1):1–19. doi: 10.5271/sjweh.2503. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. McLaughlin J. K., Mandel J. S., Mehl E. S., Blot W. J. Comparison of next-of-kin with self-respondents regarding questions on cigarette, coffee, and alcohol consumption. Epidemiology. 1990 Sep;1(5):408–412. doi: 10.1097/00001648-199009000-00013. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Morabia A., Markowitz S., Garibaldi K., Wynder E. L. Lung cancer and occupation: results of a multicentre case-control study. Br J Ind Med. 1992 Oct;49(10):721–727. doi: 10.1136/oem.49.10.721. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Moulin J. J., Portefaix P., Wild P., Mur J. M., Smagghe G., Mantout B. Mortality study among workers producing ferroalloys and stainless steel in France. Br J Ind Med. 1990 Aug;47(8):537–543. doi: 10.1136/oem.47.8.537. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Pannett B., Coggon D., Acheson E. D. A job-exposure matrix for use in population based studies in England and Wales. Br J Ind Med. 1985 Nov;42(11):777–783. doi: 10.1136/oem.42.11.777. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. Pastorino U., Berrino F., Gervasio A., Pesenti V., Riboli E., Crosignani P. Proportion of lung cancers due to occupational exposure. Int J Cancer. 1984 Feb 15;33(2):231–237. doi: 10.1002/ijc.2910330211. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  25. Radford E. P. Cancer mortality in the steel industry. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 1976;271:228–238. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.1976.tb23116.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  26. Rönneberg A., Langmark F. Epidemiologic evidence of cancer in aluminum reduction plant workers. Am J Ind Med. 1992;22(4):573–590. doi: 10.1002/ajim.4700220412. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  27. Rønneberg A., Andersen A. Mortality and cancer morbidity in workers from an aluminium smelter with prebaked carbon anodes--Part II: Cancer morbidity. Occup Environ Med. 1995 Apr;52(4):250–254. doi: 10.1136/oem.52.4.250. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  28. Vineis P., Simonato L. Proportion of lung and bladder cancers in males resulting from occupation: a systematic approach. Arch Environ Health. 1991 Jan-Feb;46(1):6–15. doi: 10.1080/00039896.1991.9937423. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  29. Xu Z., Brown L. M., Pan G. W., Liu T. F., Gao G. S., Stone B. J., Cao R. M., Guan D. X., Sheng J. H., Yan Z. S. Cancer risks among iron and steel workers in Anshan, China, Part II: Case-control studies of lung and stomach cancer. Am J Ind Med. 1996 Jul;30(1):7–15. doi: 10.1002/(SICI)1097-0274(199607)30:1<7::AID-AJIM2>3.0.CO;2-#. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  30. Xu Z., Pan G. W., Liu L. M., Brown L. M., Guan D. X., Xiu Q., Sheng J. H., Stone B. J., Dosemeci M., Fraumeni J. F., Jr Cancer risks among iron and steel workers in Anshan, China, Part I: Proportional mortality ratio analysis. Am J Ind Med. 1996 Jul;30(1):1–6. doi: 10.1002/(SICI)1097-0274(199607)30:1<1::AID-AJIM1>3.0.CO;2-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  31. Yamaguchi N., Kido M., Hoshuyama T., Manabe H., Kikuchi Y., Nishio T., Ohshima L. H., Watanabe S. A case-control study on occupational lung cancer risks in an industrialized city of Japan. Jpn J Cancer Res. 1992 Feb;83(2):134–140. doi: 10.1111/j.1349-7006.1992.tb00077.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

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

RESOURCES