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Cancer incidence among male Massachusetts firefighters, 1987–2003
Author(s) -
Kang Dongmug,
Davis Letitia K.,
Hunt Phillip,
Kriebel David
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
american journal of industrial medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.7
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1097-0274
pISSN - 0271-3586
DOI - 10.1002/ajim.20549
Subject(s) - medicine , cancer , bladder cancer , odds ratio , incidence (geometry) , colorectal cancer , epidemiology , lung cancer , cancer incidence , demography , physics , sociology , optics
Background Firefighters are known to be exposed to recognized or probable carcinogens. Previous studies have found elevated risks of several types of cancers in firefighters. Methods Standardized morbidity odds ratio (SMORs) were used to evaluate the cancer risk in white, male firefighters compared to police and all other occupations in the Massachusetts Cancer Registry from 1986 to 2003. Firefighters and police were identified by text search of the usual occupation field. All other occupations included cases with identifiable usual occupations not police or firefighter. Control cancers were those not associated with firefighters in previous studies. Results Risks were moderately elevated among firefighters for colon cancer (SMOR = 1.36, 95% CI: 1.04–1.79), and brain cancer (SMOR = 1.90, 95% CI: 1.10–3.26). Weaker evidence of increased risk was observed for bladder cancer (SMOR = 1.22, 95% CI: 0.89–1.69), kidney cancer (SMOR = 1.34, 95% CI: 0.90–2.01), and Hodgkin's lymphoma (SMOR = 1.81, 95% CI: 0.72–4.53). Conclusions These findings are compatible with previous reports, adding to the evidence that firefighters are at increased risk of a number of types of cancer. Am. J. Ind. Med. 51:329–335, 2008. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.