SYN-JEM: A Quantitative Job-Exposure Matrix for Five Lung Carcinogens.
OBJECTIVE
The use of measurement data in occupational exposure assessment allows more quantitative analyses of possible exposure-response relations. We describe a quantitative exposure assessment approach for five lung carcinogens (i.e. asbestos, chromium-VI, nickel, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (by its proxy benzo(a)pyrene (BaP)) and respirable crystalline silica). A quantitative job-exposure matrix (JEM) was developed based on statistical modeling of large quantities of personal measurements.


METHODS
Empirical linear models were developed using personal occupational exposure measurements (n = 102306) from Europe and Canada, as well as auxiliary information like job (industry), year of sampling, region, an a priori exposure rating of each job (none, low, and high exposed), sampling and analytical methods, and sampling duration. The model outcomes were used to create a JEM with a quantitative estimate of the level of exposure by job, year, and region.


RESULTS
Decreasing time trends were observed for all agents between the 1970s and 2009, ranging from -1.2% per year for personal BaP and nickel exposures to -10.7% for asbestos (in the time period before an asbestos ban was implemented). Regional differences in exposure concentrations (adjusted for measured jobs, years of measurement, and sampling method and duration) varied by agent, ranging from a factor 3.3 for chromium-VI up to a factor 10.5 for asbestos.


CONCLUSIONS
We estimated time-, job-, and region-specific exposure levels for four (asbestos, chromium-VI, nickel, and RCS) out of five considered lung carcinogens. Through statistical modeling of large amounts of personal occupational exposure measurement data we were able to derive a quantitative JEM to be used in community-based studies.
1.Environmental Epidemiology Division, Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands; 2.Occupational Respiratory Epidemiology, School of Population Health, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia; h.kromhout@uu.nl.
Susan
S
Peters
1.Environmental Epidemiology Division, Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands; 3.Julius Center for Health Sciences and Primary Care, University Medical Center, Utrecht, The Netherlands;
Roel
R
Vermeulen
1.Environmental Epidemiology Division, Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands;
Lützen
L
Portengen
4.International Agency for Research on Cancer, Lyon, France;
Ann
A
Olsson
5.Institute for Prevention and Occupational Medicine of the German Social Accident Insurance, Institute of the Rurh-Universität Bochum, Bochum, Germany;
Benjamin
B
Kendzia
6.Institut National de Recherche et de Sécurité, Vandoeuvre lès Nancy, France;
Raymond
R
Vincent
6.Institut National de Recherche et de Sécurité, Vandoeuvre lès Nancy, France;
Barbara
B
Savary
7.Research Centre of University of Montreal Hospital Research Centre, Canada;
Jérôme
J
Lavoué
8.Department of Science and High Technology, Università degli Studi dell'Insubria, Como, Italy;
Domenico
D
Cavallo
8.Department of Science and High Technology, Università degli Studi dell'Insubria, Como, Italy;
Andrea
A
Cattaneo
9.Cancer Epidemiology Unit, CPO-Piemonte and University of Turin, Turin, Italy;
Dario
D
Mirabelli
10.The Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden;
Nils
N
Plato
11.Département santé travail, Institut de veille sanitaire, St Maurice, France.
Joelle
J
Fevotte
5.Institute for Prevention and Occupational Medicine of the German Social Accident Insurance, Institute of the Rurh-Universität Bochum, Bochum, Germany;
Beate
B
Pesch
5.Institute for Prevention and Occupational Medicine of the German Social Accident Insurance, Institute of the Rurh-Universität Bochum, Bochum, Germany;
Thomas
T
Brüning
4.International Agency for Research on Cancer, Lyon, France;
Kurt
K
Straif
1.Environmental Epidemiology Division, Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands;
Hans
H
Kromhout
D000395:Air Pollutants, Occupational / Q000032:analysis*; D001194:Asbestos / Q000032:analysis; D002170:Canada; D002273:Carcinogens / Q000032:analysis*; D002857:Chromium / Q000032:analysis; D005060:Europe; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000209:etiology*; D009532:Nickel / Q000032:analysis; D016273:Occupational Exposure / Q000032:analysis*; D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons / Q000032:analysis; D012822:Silicon Dioxide / Q000032:analysis
D000395:Air Pollutants, Occupational; D002273:Carcinogens; D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons; D002857:Chromium; D001194:Asbestos; D012822:Silicon Dioxide; D009532:Nickel
asbestos exposure; chromium; exposure assessment; exposure assessment—mixed models; nickel; polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons; respirable crystalline silica; retrospective exposure assessment