title: Cancer risks among female farmers in Sweden.
abstract: There are few studies on cancer risks among female farmers, particularly on breast cancer and cancer in female genital organs. We have conducted a cohort study of cancer risk among 50,682 women with occupations in agriculture according to the Swedish 1970 census. The cohort was followed up in the nationwide, population-based, Cancer-Environment Register from 1 January 1971 until death or until 31 December 1987. Expected number of cases was based on annual cancer incidence in five-year age groups. The standardized incidence ratio (SIR) was computed as the ratio between observed and expected number of cases. A total of 4,474 cases of cancer were observed in the cohort from 1971 until 1987 cf 5,273 expected, resulting in a significantly decreased SIR of 0.85 (95 percent confidence interval [CI] = 0.82-0.87). SIR for breast cancer was significantly decreased (0.83, CI = 0.78-0.88), as was the SIR for cervix uteri (0.40, CI = 0.31-0.50). For the other female genital organs, SIR was close to one. Other cancer sites with significantly decreased SIRs were: colon (0.90, CI = 0.81-1.00); rectum (0.86, CI = 0.74-1.00); lung (0.46, CI = 0.37-0.57); kidney (0.81, CI = 0.68-0.97); urinary organs (0.57, CI = 0.45-0.72); connective tissue and muscle (0.62, CI = 0.39-0.95); and non-Hodgkin's lymphomas (0.78, CI = 0.63-0.96).
authors.affiliation: Department of Cancer Epidemiology, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Wiklund
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dich
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000382:Agricultural Workers' Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003110:Colonic Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005833:Genital Neoplasms, Female / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology; D008228:Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin / Q000453:epidemiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology*; D009372:Neoplasms, Connective Tissue / Q000453:epidemiology; D011159:Population Surveillance; D012004:Rectal Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology; D012042:Registries; D012307:Risk Factors; D012983:Soft Tissue Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology; D014571:Urologic Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology