For BS Greely
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF
HEALTH NIH News National Cancer Institute (NCI) http://www.nci.nih.gov/>
Embargoed for Release: Tuesday, May 12, 2009, 4:00 p.m. EDT
CONTACT: NCI Office of Media Relations, 301-496-6641,
FORMALDEHYDE EXPOSURE AMONG INDUSTRIAL WORKERS IS ASSOCIATED WITH
INCREASED RISK OF CANCERS OF THE BLOOD AND LYMPHATIC SYSTEM
Results from an ongoing study of workers employed at plants that used or
produced formaldehyde continue to show a possible link between
formaldehyde exposure and death from cancers of the blood and lymphatic
system, particularly myeloid leukemia. The report, by researchers at the
National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of
Health, provides an additional 10 years of follow-up data to build on
previous findings from this study. The report appeared online May 12,
2009, and in print May 20, 2009, in the Journal of the National Cancer
Institute.
"The overall patterns of risk seen in this extended follow-up of
industrial workers, while not definitive, are consistent with a causal
association between formaldehyde exposure and cancers of the blood and
lymphatic system and warrant continued concern. Further studies are
needed to evaluate risks of these cancers in other formaldehyde-exposed
populations and to assess possible biological mechanisms," said lead
author of the report, Laura E. Beane Freeman, Ph.D., NCI Division of
Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics.
Formaldehyde is widely used for industrial purposes and as a
preservative and disinfectant. The International Agency for Research on
Cancer classifies this chemical as a human carcinogen, based primarily
on its association with nasopharyngeal cancer. In 1995, the U.S.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration estimated that
approximately 2.1 million workers in the United States were exposed to
formaldehyde.
Since the 1980s, NCI has studied cancer deaths among a group of 25,619
workers, predominately white males, who were employed before 1966 in 10
industrial plants that produced formaldehyde and formaldehyde resin and
that used the chemical to produce molded-plastic products, decorative
laminates, photographic film, or plywood. In a previous report from this
study, which included data on cancer deaths through 1994, researchers
showed that the risk of death from leukemias (myeloid leukemia in
particular) increased with higher levels of formaldehyde exposure.
In this report, which includes an average follow-up of over 40 years,
researchers found a statistically significant association between death
from all blood and lymphatic cancers combined and peak formaldehyde
exposure. Workers with the highest peak exposures had a 37 percent
increased risk of death compared to those with the lowest level of peak
exposures. This represents an excess risk of death from several specific
cancers, including Hodgkin's lymphoma, multiple myeloma, and myeloid
leukemia -- the type most often associated with chemical exposure.
In this study, the risk of death from myeloid leukemia was 78 percent
higher among industrial workers with the highest peak exposures compared
to those with the lowest peak exposures. Excess risks of death from
myeloid leukemia have also been reported among pathologists, embalmers,
and other professionals who experience high-intensity peak exposures to
formaldehyde. The highest level of increased risk of death from myeloid
leukemia in this study occurred early on and has been declining steadily
over time. This pattern could be due to chance, but the investigators
note that similar patterns of risks over time have been seen for agents
that are known to cause leukemia relatively soon after exposure.
"We know that various groups of professionals who may experience high
peak exposures to formaldehyde are at increased risk of leukemia, but
the evidence from studies of industrial workers, among whom exposure
levels and patterns may be more variable, has been conflicting. The fact
that we see an excess in this study of industrial workers, which is both
the largest and the one with the most extensive exposure assessment, is
notable," said Beane Freeman.
Based on the available data, scientists have not been able to identify a
mechanism for how normal white blood cells might become leukemic
following exposure to formaldehyde, because there is no direct evidence
that formaldehyde damages cells in the bone marrow. However, studies of
humans exposed to inhaled formaldehyde have shown higher rates of damage
to their chromosomes in a type of mature white blood cells compared with
rates in individuals who were not exposed to formaldehyde. Although the
relevance to the development of leukemia of such chromosomal damage to
mature white blood cells is not clear, agents that cause leukemia are
also known to be associated with chromosomal aberrations in the
peripheral blood cells of humans.
This study is also the first to report a statistically significant
association between a chemical exposure and increased risk of death from
Hodgkin lymphoma. Although based on a small number of deaths, the
finding may warrant further study.
NCI leads the National Cancer Program and the NIH effort to dramatically
reduce the burden of cancer and improve the lives of cancer patients and
their families, through research into prevention and cancer biology, the
development of new interventions, and the training and mentoring of new
researchers. For more information about cancer, please visit the NCI Web
site at or call NCI's Cancer Information Service
at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237).
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) -- The Nation's Medical Research
Agency -- includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It is the primary federal
agency for conducting and supporting basic, clinical and translational
medical research, and it investigates the causes, treatments, and cures
for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and
its programs, visit .
--------------------------------------
Reference: Beane Freeman LE, Blair A, Lubin JH, Stewart PA, Hayes RB,
Hoover RN, and Hauptmann M. Mortality from Lymphohematopoietic
Malignancies Among Workers in Formaldehyde Industries: The National
Cancer Institute Cohort. May 20,2009, "JNCI," Vol. 101, No. 10.
##
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HEALTH NIH News National Cancer Institute (NCI) http://www.nci.nih.gov/>
Embargoed for Release: Tuesday, May 12, 2009, 4:00 p.m. EDT
CONTACT: NCI Office of Media Relations, 301-496-6641,
FORMALDEHYDE EXPOSURE AMONG INDUSTRIAL WORKERS IS ASSOCIATED WITH
INCREASED RISK OF CANCERS OF THE BLOOD AND LYMPHATIC SYSTEM
Results from an ongoing study of workers employed at plants that used or
produced formaldehyde continue to show a possible link between
formaldehyde exposure and death from cancers of the blood and lymphatic
system, particularly myeloid leukemia. The report, by researchers at the
National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of
Health, provides an additional 10 years of follow-up data to build on
previous findings from this study. The report appeared online May 12,
2009, and in print May 20, 2009, in the Journal of the National Cancer
Institute.
"The overall patterns of risk seen in this extended follow-up of
industrial workers, while not definitive, are consistent with a causal
association between formaldehyde exposure and cancers of the blood and
lymphatic system and warrant continued concern. Further studies are
needed to evaluate risks of these cancers in other formaldehyde-exposed
populations and to assess possible biological mechanisms," said lead
author of the report, Laura E. Beane Freeman, Ph.D., NCI Division of
Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics.
Formaldehyde is widely used for industrial purposes and as a
preservative and disinfectant. The International Agency for Research on
Cancer classifies this chemical as a human carcinogen, based primarily
on its association with nasopharyngeal cancer. In 1995, the U.S.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration estimated that
approximately 2.1 million workers in the United States were exposed to
formaldehyde.
Since the 1980s, NCI has studied cancer deaths among a group of 25,619
workers, predominately white males, who were employed before 1966 in 10
industrial plants that produced formaldehyde and formaldehyde resin and
that used the chemical to produce molded-plastic products, decorative
laminates, photographic film, or plywood. In a previous report from this
study, which included data on cancer deaths through 1994, researchers
showed that the risk of death from leukemias (myeloid leukemia in
particular) increased with higher levels of formaldehyde exposure.
In this report, which includes an average follow-up of over 40 years,
researchers found a statistically significant association between death
from all blood and lymphatic cancers combined and peak formaldehyde
exposure. Workers with the highest peak exposures had a 37 percent
increased risk of death compared to those with the lowest level of peak
exposures. This represents an excess risk of death from several specific
cancers, including Hodgkin's lymphoma, multiple myeloma, and myeloid
leukemia -- the type most often associated with chemical exposure.
In this study, the risk of death from myeloid leukemia was 78 percent
higher among industrial workers with the highest peak exposures compared
to those with the lowest peak exposures. Excess risks of death from
myeloid leukemia have also been reported among pathologists, embalmers,
and other professionals who experience high-intensity peak exposures to
formaldehyde. The highest level of increased risk of death from myeloid
leukemia in this study occurred early on and has been declining steadily
over time. This pattern could be due to chance, but the investigators
note that similar patterns of risks over time have been seen for agents
that are known to cause leukemia relatively soon after exposure.
"We know that various groups of professionals who may experience high
peak exposures to formaldehyde are at increased risk of leukemia, but
the evidence from studies of industrial workers, among whom exposure
levels and patterns may be more variable, has been conflicting. The fact
that we see an excess in this study of industrial workers, which is both
the largest and the one with the most extensive exposure assessment, is
notable," said Beane Freeman.
Based on the available data, scientists have not been able to identify a
mechanism for how normal white blood cells might become leukemic
following exposure to formaldehyde, because there is no direct evidence
that formaldehyde damages cells in the bone marrow. However, studies of
humans exposed to inhaled formaldehyde have shown higher rates of damage
to their chromosomes in a type of mature white blood cells compared with
rates in individuals who were not exposed to formaldehyde. Although the
relevance to the development of leukemia of such chromosomal damage to
mature white blood cells is not clear, agents that cause leukemia are
also known to be associated with chromosomal aberrations in the
peripheral blood cells of humans.
This study is also the first to report a statistically significant
association between a chemical exposure and increased risk of death from
Hodgkin lymphoma. Although based on a small number of deaths, the
finding may warrant further study.
NCI leads the National Cancer Program and the NIH effort to dramatically
reduce the burden of cancer and improve the lives of cancer patients and
their families, through research into prevention and cancer biology, the
development of new interventions, and the training and mentoring of new
researchers. For more information about cancer, please visit the NCI Web
site at or call NCI's Cancer Information Service
at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237).
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) -- The Nation's Medical Research
Agency -- includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It is the primary federal
agency for conducting and supporting basic, clinical and translational
medical research, and it investigates the causes, treatments, and cures
for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and
its programs, visit .
--------------------------------------
Reference: Beane Freeman LE, Blair A, Lubin JH, Stewart PA, Hayes RB,
Hoover RN, and Hauptmann M. Mortality from Lymphohematopoietic
Malignancies Among Workers in Formaldehyde Industries: The National
Cancer Institute Cohort. May 20,2009, "JNCI," Vol. 101, No. 10.
##
This NIH News Release is available online at:
.
To subscribe (or unsubscribe) from this list, go to
.