Abstract
BackgroundTo examine associations between occupational exposure to petroleum-based and oxygenated solvents and the risk of hypopharyngeal and laryngeal cancer.MethodsICARE is a large, frequency-matched population-based case-control study conducted in France. Lifetime occupational history, tobacco smoking and alcohol consumption were collected. Analyses were restricted to men and included 383 cases of hypopharyngeal cancer, 454 cases of laryngeal cancer, and 2780 controls. Job–exposure matrices were used to assess exposure to five petroleum-based solvents (benzene; gasoline; white spirits; diesel, fuels and kerosene; special petroleum products) and to five oxygenated solvents (alcohols; ketones and esters; ethylene glycol; diethyl ether; tetrahydrofuran). Odds ratios (ORs) adjusted for smoking, alcohol drinking and other potential confounders and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated with unconditional logistic models.ResultsNo significant association was found between hypopharyngeal or laryngeal cancer risk and exposure to the solvents under study. Non-significantly elevated risks of hypopharyngeal cancer were found in men exposed to high cumulative levels of white spirits (OR = 1.46; 95% CI: 0.88–2.43) and tetrahydrofuran (OR = 2.63; 95CI%: 0.55–12.65), with some indication of a dose-response relationship (p for trend: 0.09 and 0.07 respectively).ConclusionThis study provides weak evidence for an association between hypopharyngeal cancer and exposure to white spirits and tetrahydrofuran, and overall does not suggest a substantial role of exposure to petroleum-based or oxygenated solvents in hypopharyngeal or laryngeal cancer risk.
Highlights
To examine associations between occupational exposure to petroleum-based and oxygenated solvents and the risk of hypopharyngeal and laryngeal cancer
We previously examined the role of chlorinated solvents in head and neck cancer risk, and found an association between exposure to perchloroethylene and laryngeal cancer [10]
As we previously found that exposure to perchloroethylene [10] was associated with laryngeal cancer, adjustment for this exposure was performed but did not modify Odds ratios (ORs) estimates
Summary
To examine associations between occupational exposure to petroleum-based and oxygenated solvents and the risk of hypopharyngeal and laryngeal cancer. Several occupational exposures are known or suspected to be associated with these cancers. Exposure to strong acid mists [4] and to asbestos [5] are recognized risk factors for laryngeal cancer, and there is some evidence that exposure to asbestos increases the risk of hypopharyngeal cancer [5]. Other possible occupational risk factors include exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, engine exhausts, and solvents [6]. Exposure to solvents in general was found to be associated with an increased risk of laryngeal or hypopharyngeal cancer in several studies [7,8,9], but the role of specific solvents was rarely investigated
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