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Copyright National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Oct 2015

Abstract

Background: The association between benzene exposure and non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) has been the subject of debate as a result of inconsistent epidemiologic evidence. An International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) working group evaluated benzene in 2009 and noted evidence for a positive association between benzene exposure and NHL risk.

Objective: We evaluated the association between occupational benzene exposure and NHL among 73,087 women enrolled in the prospective population-based Shanghai Women's Health Study.

Methods: Benzene exposure estimates were derived using a previously developed exposure assessment framework that combined ordinal job-exposure matrix intensity ratings with quantitative benzene exposure measurements from an inspection database of Shanghai factories collected between 1954 and 2000. Associations between benzene exposure metrics and NHL (n = 102 cases) were assessed using Cox proportional hazard models, with study follow-up occurring from December 1996 through December 2009.

Results: Women ever exposed to benzene had a significantly higher risk of NHL [hazard ratio (HR) = 1.87, 95% CI: 1.19, 2.96]. Compared with unexposed women, significant trends in NHL risk were observed for increasing years of benzene exposure (ptrend = 0.006) and increasing cumulative exposure levels (ptrend = 0.005), with the highest duration and cumulative exposure tertiles having a significantly higher association with NHL (HR = 2.07, 95% CI: 1.07, 4.01 and HR = 2.16, 95% CI: 1.17, 3.98, respectively).

Conclusions: Our findings, using a population-based prospective cohort of women with diverse occupational histories, provide additional evidence that occupational exposure to benzene is associated with NHL risk.

Details

Title
Occupational Exposure to Benzene and Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma in a Population-Based Cohort: The Shanghai Women's Health Study
Author
Bassig, Bryan A; Friesen, Melissa C; Vermeulen, Roel; Xiao-Ou, Shu; Purdue, Mark P; Stewart, Patricia A; Yong-Bing, Xiang; Wong-Ho, Chow; Zheng, Tongzhang; Bu-Tian Ji; Gong, Yang; Linet, Martha S; Hu, Wei; Zhang, Heping; Zheng, Wei; Yu-Tang, Gao
First page
971
Section
Research
Publication year
2015
Publication date
Oct 2015
Publisher
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
e-ISSN
15529924
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
1718342586
Copyright
Copyright National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Oct 2015