Farming and exposure to chemicals in male lung cancer patients and their siblings.
We conducted a retrospective questionnaire study concerning farming and exposure to chemicals on 165 male lung cancer patients, mean age +/- SE, 64.2 +/- 1.0 years, and 165 closest in age male siblings, mean age 64.5 +/- 0.7 years. The patients were diagnosed as having primary lung cancer between January 1, 1979, and November 1, 1983. Among the lung cancer patients, 38.5% had a same-sex sibling eligible for inclusion and of these, 62.0% responded to the questionnaire. Mean pack-years of smoking for patients was 41.0 +/- 2.2 (n = 135) and among the siblings 36.9 +/- 2.4 (118) (P less than .002). The occupation of farming was present in 47.8% of 163 patients with known occupations as compared to 37.6% of 155 siblings with known occupations (not significant). Patients were consistently exposed more frequently to herbicides (P = .05), grains (P less than .015), and diesel fuels (P less than .005), and were consistently exposed to greater numbers of chemicals than were siblings (P less than .005). These findings raise the possibility that, in addition to smoking, farming and related exposures could be implicated in the etiology of lung cancer in men.
McDuffie
H H
HH
Centre for Agricultural Medicine, University Hospital, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada.
Klaassen
D J
DJ
Cockcroft
D W
DW
Dosman
J A
JA
D000368:Aged; D000382:Agricultural Workers' Diseases; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000209:etiology* / Q000235:genetics; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009784:Occupational Diseases; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012737:Sex Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires