US EPA

68 

Journal Article 

Mortality from lung cancer in asbestos workers 

Doll, R 

1955 

1 

Occupational and Environmental Medicine
ISSN: 1351-0711
EISSN: 1470-7926 

NIOSH/00193026 

12 

2 

81-86 

English 

14363586 

10.1136/oem.12.2.81 

https://oem.bmj.com/lookup/doi/10.1136/oem.12.2.81
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is also published as 3081978 1955

Necropsy data on 105 consecutive subjects who had been employed at an asbestos factory during the period 1933 to 1952 were reviewed and analyzed. Lung cancer associated with asbestosis was found in a total of 15 deaths (14 men, one woman); all had been employed in the asbestos industry for at least 9 years prior to dust control legislation. The cases were evenly distributed between halves of the followup period. Three additional cases of lung cancer, not associated with asbestosis were identified among the remaining 90. Lung cancer risk was estimated in a group of 113 men with at least 20 years of asbestos exposure, using age adjusted mortality rates. A total of 39 deaths due to all causes were noted in the cohort, compared with 15.4 expected deaths calculated from mortality rates for England and Wales; virtually all excess mortality was explained by lung cancer. Eleven deaths due to lung cancer with mention of asbestosis, and fourteen deaths due to other respiratory conditions with mention of asbestos were observed. Mortality due to lung cancer and asbestosis declined when comparing data before and after the dust control legislation. The author concludes that workers exposed to asbestos suffer excess mortality from lung cancer, but that the risk has become progressively less as duration of employment in dusty conditions has decreased.