Lung cancer and indoor exposure to coal and biomass in rural China.
Incomplete combustion of coal in homes has been linked with lung cancer in China. We report on a lung cancer case-control study in a rural area of China, where many residents live in underground dwellings and burn coal and unprocessed biomass (crop residues, wood, sticks, and twigs) for heating and cooking. We interviewed 846 patients with lung cancer (626 men, 220 women; aged 30 to 75 years) diagnosed between 1994 and 1998, and 1740 population-based controls. The odds ratio for lung cancer associated with coal use compared with that for biomass in the house of longest residence was 1.29 (95% confidence interval, 1.03 to 1.61), adjusted for smoking and socioeconomic status. The risk for lung cancer increased relative to the percentage of time that coal was used over the past 30 years (P = 0.02). Our findings suggest that coal may contribute to the risk of lung cancer in this rural area of China.
Kleinerman
Ruth A
RA
Radiation Epidemiology Branch, Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, 6120 Executive Boulevard, EPS 7044, MSC 7238, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA. kleinerr@mail.nih.gov
Wang
Zuoyuan
Z
Wang
Longde
L
Metayer
Catherine
C
Zhang
Shouzhi
S
Brenner
Alina V
AV
Zhang
Shurong
S
Xia
Ying
Y
Shang
Bing
B
Lubin
Jay H
JH
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D016902:Air Pollution, Indoor / Q000009:adverse effects*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D003031:Coal / Q000009:adverse effects*; D003296:Cooking; D005260:Female; D006361:Heating; D006801:Humans; D008171:Lung Diseases / Q000209:etiology; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016017:Odds Ratio; D012424:Rural Population; D013997:Time Factors
D003031:Coal