Table 3.
Cancers caused by occupational carcinogens (n=47 agents), evaluated in IARC Monographs volumes 1–120
| Cancers with sufficient evidence in humans | Agents | Number of occurrences | % |
| Lung | Bis(chloromethyl)ether; chloromethyl methyl ether (technical -grade); Coal-tar pitch; Sulfur mustard; Arsenic and inorganic arsenic compounds; Beryllium and beryllium compounds; Cadmium and cadmium compounds; Chromium (VI) compounds; Nickel compounds; Asbestos (all forms, including actinolite, amosite, anthophyllite, chrysotile, crocidolite, tremolite); Particulate matter in outdoor air pollution; Silica dust, crystalline, in the form of quartz or cristobalite; Soot; Welding fumes; Engine exhaust, diesel; Outdoor air pollution; Tobacco smoke, secondhand; X-radiation and Gamma-Radiation; Plutonium; Radon-222 and its decay products | 19 | 23 |
| Skin | Coal-tar pitch; Mineral oils, untreated or mildly treated; Shale oils; Arsenic and inorganic arsenic compounds; Soot; X-radiation and Gamma-Radiation; Solar radiation; Ultraviolet radiation | 8 | 10 |
| Bone, including mastoid process | X-radiation and Gamma-Radiation; Plutonium; Radium-224 and its decay products; Radium-226 and its decay products; Radium-226 and its decay products | 5 | 6 |
| Haematolymphatic system, including leukaemia, NHL | 1,3-Butadiene; Benzene; Coal-tar pitch; X-radiation and Gamma-Radiation; Formaldehyde; Lindane; Pentachlorophenol | 7 | 9 |
| Leukaemia | Benzene; Coal-tar pitch; X-radiation and Gamma-Radiation | 3 | 4 |
| Non-Hodgkin lymphomanNon-Hodgkin’s lymphoma | Formaldehyde; Lindane; Pentachlorophenol | 3 | 4 |
| Urinary bladder | ortho-Toluidine; Arsenic and inorganic arsenic compounds; X-radiation and Gamma-Radiation; 2-Naphthylamine; 4-Aminobiphenyl; Benzidiene | 6 | 7 |
| Nasal cavity and paranasal sinus | Acid mists, strong inorganic; Chromium (VI) compounds; Leather dust; Nickel compounds; Wood dust | 5 | 6 |
| Thyroid | X-radiation and Gamma-Radiation; Radioiodines, including iodine-131 | 2 | 2 |
| Breast | X-radiation and Gamma-Radiation | 1 | 1 |
| Kidney | Trichloroethylene; X-radiation and Gamma-Radiation | 2 | 2 |
| Larynx | Asbestos (all forms, including actinolite, amosite, anthophyllite, chrysotile, crocidolite, tremolite); Acid mists, strong inorganic | 2 | 2 |
| Liver | Plutonium; Vinyl chloride | 2 | 2 |
| Nasopharynx | Formaldehyde; Wood dust | 2 | 2 |
| All cancers combined | 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-para-dioxin | 1 | 1 |
| Biliary tract | 1,2-Dichloropropane | 1 | 1 |
| Brain and central nervous system | X-radiation and Gamma-Radiation | 1 | 1 |
| Colon | X-radiation and Gamma-Radiation | 1 | 1 |
| EsophagusOesophagus | X-radiation and Gamma-Radiation | 1 | 1 |
| Eye | Ultraviolet radiation | 1 | 1 |
| Malignant melanoma | Polychlorinated biphenyls | 1 | 1 |
| Mesothelioma | Asbestos (all forms, including actinolite, amosite, anthophyllite, chrysotile, crocidolite, tremolite) | 1 | 1 |
| Ovary | Asbestos (all forms, including actinolite, amosite, anthophyllite, chrysotile, crocidolite, tremolite) | 1 | 1 |
| Salivary gland | X-radiation and Gamma-Radiation | 1 | 1 |
| Stomach | X-radiation and Gamma-Radiation | 1 | 1 |
| Total | 82 | 100 |
IARC, International Agency for Research on Cancer; NHL, non-Hodgkin lymphoma.