Italian National Register of Occupational Cancers: data system and findings

Our plain-English summary of Italian National Register of Occupational Cancers: data system and findings, by A. Scarselli, S. Massari, A. Binazzi, et al (Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 2010).

The study

• Authors: A. Scarselli, S. Massari, A. Binazzi, D. Di Marzio, P. Scano, A. Marinaccio, S. Iavicoli
• Journal: Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine
• Published: 2010;52(3):346-53
• Cited by: 3 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher

Abstract

Objective: To analyze data stored in the National Register of Occupational Cancers, set up by law at the Italian Institute for Occupational Safety and Prevention.

Methods: Statistical analyses were performed on economic activity, cancer site, and carcinogenic agent. Mesothelioma cases were excluded because they were exhaustively recorded and managed in a proper register.

Results: The number of cancers diagnosed between 1995 and 2008 was 936 (92% men). Lung cancer was the most frequently reported neoplasm (58% of cases). The metal industry had the highest reporting percentage (15%), and silica was the most common causative agent (20%).

Conclusions: Despite some limits and incompleteness pertaining to data flow, the results of this study are in accordance with epidemiological findings on occupational cancer risks. The collection of information on occupational cancers is of primary importance to plan targeted prevention programs.

In plain English

This article described the National Register of Low etiological fraction Occupational Cancers (ReNaLOC). It is one of three sections into which the Italian National Register of Occupational Cancers was reorganized in 2008. ReNaLOC is a database run by the Italian Institute for Occupational Safety and Prevention (ISPESL) that collects reports of cancers suspected to have been caused by work. The authors gave a descriptive analysis of its contents. Mesothelioma cases were excluded because they are recorded in a separate register. The register held 936 malignant cancers diagnosed from 1995 to 2008, and 92% of them were in men. Lung cancer made up 57.9% of cases and sinonasal cancer 16.9%. Nine cancers of the pleura were listed. A person could be reported with more than one agent, giving 1265 agent reports in all. Silica was the most frequent (19.8%), followed by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (18.1%) and asbestos (14.3%, or 181 reports: 178 in men and 3 in women). Lombardy, Piedmont and Veneto accounted for 76% of cases. The authors concluded that the results were in accordance with epidemiological findings on occupational cancer risks. They noted that the register relies on passive reporting and has incomplete data, misclassification and limited geographic coverage.

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: Description of a section of a national register of reported occupational cancers (ReNaLOC), with a descriptive statistical analysis of its records
• Who was studied: 936 malignant cancers of suspected occupational origin diagnosed from 1995 to 2008 and notified to ISPESL in Italy; 92% in men; mesothelioma cases excluded
• Exposure: Workplace carcinogens recorded in the reports, grouped by type. The most frequent were silica, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), asbestos, ionizing radiation, and metals and compounds. Asbestos is not broken down by fiber type.
• Main results:
  • Of all 936 cases, lung cancer was the most common site (57.9%), followed by sinonasal cancer (16.9%)
  • Cancer of the pleura was listed in 9 cases (1.0%), all in men; mesothelioma cases were excluded from the analysis
  • Asbestos accounted for 181 of 1265 agent reports (14.3%): 3 in women (4.1% of women's agent reports) and 178 in men (14.9% of men's agent reports)
  • Manufacture of basic and fabricated metals was the economic sector most often reported (24.1% of employment records; a person could have worked in more than one sector)
  • Among women, the most frequent agents were ionizing radiation (59.5%), textile dusts (8.1%) and PAHs (6.8%)
  • Lombardy, Piedmont and Veneto accounted for 76% of all cases
  • The register received an average of 60 reported cases per year from 1995 to 2008
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that, despite limits and incompleteness in the data flow, the results were in accordance with epidemiological findings on occupational cancer risks
• Limitations the authors state:
  • The data collected are scarce compared with epidemiological estimates of occupational cancer (underreporting)
  • The register relies on passive registration, and the accuracy of reports depends on the notifying person
  • Geographic coverage is limited; no data came from three regions
  • There are misclassification problems and data are missing or incomplete

Topics

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Carcinogenic, Mesothelioma, Lung Cancer, Neoplasm.

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• Occupational illnesses within two national data sets — J.P. Leigh, T.R. Miller (1998)

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