Historical perspectives of occupational cancer

Our plain-English summary of Historical perspectives of occupational cancer, by P. Bogovski (Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, 1980).

The study

• Author: P. Bogovski
• Journal: Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health
• Published: 1980;6(5-6):921-39
• Type of article: Historical article
• Cited by: 9 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher
• In J-M's library: Johns-Manville's company medical library held a copy (J-M no. 002029).

Abstract

Three topics are discussed in this review, which is not intended to give even a short description of the history of occupational cancer. First, the present state and possible future trends of occupational cancer are examined. Such factors as rapid industrialization, increasing amounts of chemical compounds in the environment, and discoveries of new occupational carcinogens such as asbestos and vinyl chloride indicate that occupational cancer is likely to become more frequent in the future. The controversial issue of the proportion of cancers related to occupation is briefly considered. The upward trend of estimates of various authors during a quarter of a century indicates a growing proportion of occupational cancers in the overall incidence of cancer. Second, some lessons from the past are considered. Careful observations and alertness of physicians and proper documentation of occupational cancer cases are pointed out. Interdisciplinary teamwork and international cooperation have been useful in the past and continue to be desirable. Some details of the studies of skin cancer caused by mineral oil are informative. Individual susceptibility, whether genetically determined or due to pathological conditions, needs further study. As an example of the predictive value of animal experiments, skin cancer related to the oil shale industry in Estonia is discussed. The third topic--input from experimental cancer research--deals mainly with the problem of modifying factors. Experimental data on such factors could facilitate investigations of life-style effects, using the proposed classification of modifying factors. The problem of nasal cancer in woodworkers may be easier to solve by taking into account some experimental data on tannin-containing material. Some possibilities for future action and suggestions for further research are outlined.

In plain English

This article was a review, not a report of a new study. The author discussed three topics: the present state and likely future of occupational cancer, lessons from the past, and what experimental (animal) research can contribute. Examples included skin cancer from mineral oil and Estonian oil shale products, and nasal cancer in woodworkers. Asbestos was named, with vinyl chloride, as one of the most important recently discovered occupational carcinogens, with exposure also occurring in workers' homes. The author stated that asbestos induces lung cancer, pleural or peritoneal mesothelioma, and gastrointestinal cancer. The author cited an earlier study (Hammond and Selikoff, 1973) as demonstrating a synergistic effect of smoking with asbestos. The author noted that published estimates of the share of cancers related to occupation had trended upward over about 25 years, while acknowledging that such estimates had been strongly criticized. The author concluded that occupational cancer does not belong to the past and that experimental data should be accepted as sufficient to begin preventive measures. The author also recommended that smoking be strictly forbidden for workers exposed to asbestos.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: narrative review (presentation-style overview of occupational cancer)
• Who was studied: No study population. The review covered occupational cancer in general under three topics: present state and future trends, lessons from the past, and input from experimental research. Its examples were drawn from Britain, Estonia, the United States, Sweden, Finland and elsewhere.
• Exposure: Occupational carcinogens in general. Asbestos was discussed as a recently discovered occupational carcinogen, including exposure in workers' homes. The review also covered vinyl chloride, mineral oils, oil shale products, N-nitroso compounds and wood dust.
• Main results:
  • The author stated that asbestos induces not only lung cancer and pleural or peritoneal mesothelioma but also cancer of the gastrointestinal tract.
  • The author cited Hammond and Selikoff (1973) as an epidemiologic study demonstrating a synergistic effect of smoking with asbestos.
  • The author reported that estimates by various authors of the proportion of cancers related to occupation showed an upward trend over a quarter of a century.
  • The author cited a study by Etlin (1978) of a cohort of 2003 oil shale processing plant workers with 10 or more years of work in Estonia. That study found a statistically significant excess of skin cancer in this cohort (men p less than 0.05, women p less than 0.01) compared with urban populations. Lung and stomach cancer incidence in the cohort was lower than in the control populations.
  • The author described earlier mouse experiments by the author and Day (1977). In those experiments, tea and oak wood extract accelerated the appearance of skin tumors after a small dose of benzo[a]pyrene; tannic acid and gallic acid did not.
  • The author noted that Nicholson (1976) explicitly recommended reducing the threshold limit value for asbestos.
  • Based on the evidence for synergism of tobacco smoke and asbestos, the author recommended that smoking be strictly forbidden for workers exposed to asbestos and to other respiratory carcinogens.
• The authors' conclusion: The authors' view (a single author) was that occupational cancer does not belong to the past and its share of all cancer is likely to increase. The author also held that experimental (animal) data should be accepted as sufficient to begin preventive measures.
• Limitations the authors state:
  • The author stated that the article was not intended to give even a short review of the history of occupational cancer and was restricted to three topics.
  • The author noted that the estimates of the proportion of occupational cancers had been strongly criticized and may not apply equally to all countries.

Related studies

• Historical developments and perspectives in inorganic fiber toxicity in man — I.J. Selikoff (1990)
• Pathological recognition of diffuse malignant mesothelioma of the pleura: the significance of the historical perspective as regards this signal tumor — E.J. Mark, R.L. Kradin (2006)
• Historical perspective on asbestos: policies and protective measures in World War II shipbuilding — J.K. Corn, J. Starr (1987)
• Asbestos: historical perspective — L. Garfinkel (1984)
• An update on pleuro-pulmonary cytopathology: Part i: Cytological diagnosis of mesothelioma and molecular cytology of lung cancer with an historical perspective — C.W. Bedrossian (2015)
• Diseases related to asbestos exposure: historical perspective — H.P. Pendergrass, J.D. Snell, et al. (1987)

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