Exposure-Response Assessment of Cancer Mortality in Styrene-Exposed Boatbuilders

Details

• Personal Author:
  Bertke SJ ; Daniels, Robert D.
• Description:
  Objectives: To improve exposure estimates and reexamine exposure-response relationships between cumulative styrene exposure and cancer mortality in a previously studied cohort of US boatbuilders exposed between 1959 and 1978 and followed through 2016. Methods: Cumulative styrene exposure was estimated from work assignments and air-sampling data. Exposure-response relationships between styrene and select cancers were examined in Cox proportional hazards models matched on attained age, sex, race, birth cohort and employment duration. Models adjusted for socioeconomic status (SES). Exposures were lagged 10 years or by a period maximising the likelihood. HRs included 95% profile-likelihood CIs. Actuarial methods were used to estimate the styrene exposure corresponding to 10-4 extra lifetime risk. Results: The cohort (n= 5163) contributed 201951 person-years. Exposures were right-skewed, with mean and median of 31 and 5.7 ppm-years, respectively. Positive, monotonic exposure-response associations were evident for leukaemia (HR at 50 ppm-years styrene = 1.46; 95% CI 1.04 to 1.97) and bladder cancer (HR at 50 ppm-years styrene = 1.64; 95% CI 1.14 to 2.33). There was no evidence of confounding by SES. A working lifetime exposure to 0.05 ppm styrene corresponded to one extra leukaemia death per 10000 workers. Conclusions: The study contributes evidence of exposure-response associations between cumulative styrene exposure and cancer. Simple risk projections at current exposure levels indicate a need for formal risk assessment. Future recommendations on worker protection would benefit from additional research clarifying cancer risks from styrene exposure. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Blood Cohort Studies Demography Environmental Monitoring Mortality Neoplasms Occupational Health Safety Styrene
• Keywords:
  Air Sampling Boat Manufacturing Industry Cancer Cancer Rates Cohort Studies Demographic Characteristics Dose Response Exposure Assessment Hazards Leukemogenesis Models Mortality Data Mortality Rates Socioeconomics Statistical Analysis

  More +
• ISSN:
  1351-0711
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSI - Division of Science Integration ; DFSE - Division of Field Studies and Engineering
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  77
• Issue:
  10
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20059880
• Citation:
  Occup Environ Med 2020 Oct; 77(10):706-712
• Contact Point Address:
  Dr Robert Douglas Daniels, Division of Science Integration, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
• Email:
  rtd2@cdc.gov
• CAS Registry Number:
  Styrene (CAS RN 100-42-5)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2021
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  Occupational and Environmental Medicine
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:f129f7c6505bcba4777239d29571f61a8734c1b02e2469aa2cd7e4acebe334820b96b9424e8630ada624e803014d27c930942aae8adb618682ddcf5a89dae568
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/223936/cdc_223936_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 597.64 KB ]