Cancer type and site | Agents | Exposure definition | RR estimates | 95% CI | References | Study design/ population | Comments |
Solid cancers | |||||||
Bladder | Tetrachloroethylene | Ever exposed as laundry or dry-cleaning worker | 1.4 | 1.1 to 1.9 | Lynge 200644 | Cohort study of laundry and dry-cleaning workers (Nordic countries) | |
Hairdressers | Ever worked as hairdresser | 1.3 | 1.2 to 1.4 | Cumberbatch 201516 | Meta-analysis | ||
Diesel engine, exhausts | Any exposure | 1.2 | 1.1 to 1.3 | Rushton 201045 | Meta-analysis | ||
Low | 1.0 | 0.8 to 1.3 | |||||
High | 1.2 | 1.0 to 1.4 | |||||
Breast | Ethylene oxide | Cumulative exposure, in quintiles: | Steenland 200346 | Cohort study (USA) | Adjusted for parity and breast cancer family history | ||
1st | 1.1 | 0.7 to 1.7 | |||||
2nd | 1.0 | 0.6 to 1.6 | |||||
3rd | 1.2 | 0.8 to 2.0 | |||||
4th | 1.4 | 0.9 to 2.3 | |||||
5th | 1.9 | 1.1 to 3.1 | |||||
Shiftwork | Any exposure | 1.2 | 1.1 to 1.3 | Jia 201347 | Meta-analysis | ||
Colorectal | Asbestos | Any exposure | 1.2 | 1.0 to 1.3 | IOM 200618 | Meta-analysis | |
Kidney | Cadmium | Males: | Pesch 200048 | Case-control study (Germany) | |||
Medium | 0.8 | 0.6 to 1.1 | |||||
High | 1.4 | 1.1 to 1.8 | |||||
Substantial | 1.4 | 0.9 to 2.1 | |||||
Females: | |||||||
Medium | 0.7 | 0.2 to 2.5 | |||||
High | 2.5 | 1.2 to 5.3 | |||||
Substantial | 2.2 | 0.6 to 9.0 | |||||
Larynx | Rubber industry | Any exposure | 1.2 | 1.0 to 1.6 | Kogevinas 199849 | Meta-analysis | |
Liver | Trichlorethylene | Any exposure | 1.3 | 1.1 to 1.6 | Scott 201150 | Meta-analysis | |
Lung | Acid mists, strong inorganic | Any exposure (latency > 20 years) | 1.5 | 1.1 to 20.7 | Steenland 198951 | Cohort study (1165 steelworkers, USA) | Adjusted for smoking |
Any exposure | 1.4 | 1.0 to 1.9 | |||||
Cobalt metal with tungsten carbide | Any exposure | 1.9 | 1.03 to 3.6 | Moulin 199852 | Case-control study in hard metal workers (France) | ||
Diazinon | Exposure days: | Jones 201553 | Agricultural Health Study in males, pesticides applicators (USA) | Adjusted for smoking | |||
<20.0 | 1.1 | 0.8 to 1.7 | |||||
20.0–38.8 | 0.8 | 0.4 to 1.3 | |||||
>38.8 | 1.6 | 1.1 to 2.3 | |||||
Art glass | Any exposure | 1.3 | 1.0 to 1.6 | Sankila 199054 | Cohort of 3749 glass factory workers (Finland) | Not adjusted for smoking | |
Nasal cavity | Chromium VI | Low | 3.4 | 0.4 to 10.5 | Rosenman 199655 | Cohort study in smelter workers (4 factories) | |
High | 5.2 | 2.4 to 11.3 | |||||
Oesophagus | Rubber industry | Men only | 1.2 | 1.0 to 1.5 | Sorahan 198956 | Cohort of rubber workers (13 factories, UK) | |
Pharynx | Asbestos | Ever exposed | 1.4 | 1.04 to 2.0 | IOM 200618 | Meta-analysis | |
Prostate | Malathion | 1st quartile of exposure | 1.03 | 0.8 to 1.3 | Koutros 201357 | Agricultural Health Study | |
Stomach | Asbestos | Any exposure | 1.2 | 1.1 to 1.3 | IOM 200618 | Meta-analysis | |
Lead compounds | Any exposure | 1.3 | 1.2 to 1.5 | Fu 199558 | Meta-analysis | Not adjusted for smoking | |
Non-solid cancers | |||||||
Leukaemia (all) | Ethylene oxide | Any exposure | 1.1 | 0.6 to 1.9 | Teta 199959 | Meta-analysis | |
Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma | Diazinon | Any exposure | 1.4 | 1.0 to 1.9 | IARC analyses (not published) | Meta-analysis | |
Malathion | Any exposure | 1.5 | 0.9 to 2.3 | IARC analyses (not published) | Meta-analysis | ||
Dichloromethane | Any exposure | 1.5 | 1.0 to 2.3 | IARC analyses (not published) | Meta-analysis | ||
Trichlorethylene | Any exposure | 1.2 | 1.0 to 1.4 | Scott 201150 | Meta-analysis | ||
PCBs | Lowest tertile | 1.6 | 0.7 to 3.6 | Hopf 201060 | Cohort of 2500 capacitor workers (USA) | ||
Ethylene oxide | Any exposure | 1.3 | 1.0 to 1.9 | Teta 199959 | Meta-analysis | Based on mortality |
*According to IARC Monographs, limited evidence of carcinogenicity is established when a positive association has been observed between exposure to the agent and cancer for which a causal interpretation is considered to be credible, but chance, bias or confounding could not be ruled out with reasonable confidence.
IARC, International Agency for Research on Cancer; IOM, Institute of Medicine; PCBs, polychlorinated biphenyls.