title: Exposure to silicon carbide and cancer risk: a systematic review.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To conduct a systematic review of epidemiologic studies on risk of cancer from exposure to silicon carbide (SiC).
  
  
  METHODS
  We followed established guidelines to search electronic databases for studies on populations exposed to SiC. We conducted meta-analyses when the data justified it.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We identified two studies of SiC production workers and several studies of users. The studies of production workers indicated an increased risk of lung cancer. The increased risk was restricted to workers with elevated dust exposure and, in the most informative study from Norway, was linked to estimated cristobalite exposure, a form of crystalline silica. Increased risk was not linked to SiC particles, once cristobalite exposure was controlled for. Studies of SiC users in various industries did not reveal an increased risk of lung cancer.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The increased risk of lung cancer detected in the SiC production industry appears to be associated with high exposure levels to total dust, including crystalline silica and cristobalite which occurred in this industry in the past decades. It may not persist under current exposure circumstances, characterized by lower levels and use of personal protection equipment. Commercial users of SiC-based products were not affected.
authors.affiliation: Tisch Cancer Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA. paolo.boffetta@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Paolo
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3811-2791
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Boffetta
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Dana
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hashim
mesh_terms: D017554:Carbon Compounds, Inorganic / Q000633:toxicity*; D004391:Dust; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000139:chemically induced*; D066192:Manufacturing Industry; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced*; D016273:Occupational Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D012307:Risk Factors; D017655:Silicon Compounds / Q000633:toxicity*; D012822:Silicon Dioxide / Q000633:toxicity
chemical_list: D017554:Carbon Compounds, Inorganic; D004391:Dust; D017655:Silicon Compounds; D012822:Silicon Dioxide; C022088:silicon carbide
keywords: Carborundum; Dust/adverse effects; Lung neoplasms; Neoplasms; Occupational disease; Silicon carbide; Silicon/adverse effects