Pulmonary Dust Retention in Silicotics with and without Lung Cancer

Abstract

Abstract Recent epidemiological studies suggest a possible increased risk of lung cancer in silicotic patients. To address the question of lung dust concentrations between silicotics with and without lung cancer, we used transmission electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectroscopy to analyze 41 lung tissue samples comprising 22 noncancer silicotics, 9 silicotics with lung cancer, and 10 accidental deaths without lung fibrosis at autopsy (referred to later as background group). Comparison between the background group and the pooled silicotic group revealed significantly higher lung dust concentrations and larger particle diameters of silica, feldspar, clay, mica, and total particles in the latter group (p < 0.05). When lung dust burdens of the noncancer silicotics and lung cancer silicotics were compared, the noncancer group had higher, but not significantly, geometric mean concentrations of total particles (16 × 106 compared with 10 × 106 particles/mg), silica (4 × 106 compared with 2 × 106), clay ...