292
Views
32
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Original Articles

Association of Bladder Cancer with Residential Exposure to Petrochemical Air Pollutant Emissions in Taiwan

, , , &
Pages 53-59 | Received 28 Mar 2008, Accepted 08 May 2008, Published online: 25 Nov 2008
 

Abstract

To investigate the relationship between petrochemical air pollution and risk of death due to bladder cancer, studies were conducted using a matched cancer case-control model based upon deaths that occurred in Taiwan from 1995 through 2005. Data on all eligible bladder cancer deaths were obtained from the Bureau of Vital Statistics of the Taiwan Provincial Department of Health. The control group consisted of individuals who died from causes other than neoplasms or diseases associated with genitourinary problems. The controls were pair matched to the cases by gender, year of birth, and year of death. Each matched control was selected randomly from the set of possible controls for each case. The proportion of a municipality's total population employed in the petrochemical industry in a municipality was used as an indicator of a resident's exposure to air emissions from the petrochemical industry. The subjects were divided into three levels (≤25th percentile; 25th–50th percentile; >50th percentile). Subjects who lived in the group of municipalities characterized by the high levels of petrochemical air pollution had a significantly higher risk of death attributed to bladder cancer than subjects in the group that lived in municipalities with the lowest petrochemical air pollution levels, after controlling for possible confounders. The findings of this study warrant further investigation of the role of petrochemical air pollution in the etiology of bladder cancer.

Acknowledgments

This study was partly supported by a grant from the National Science Council, Executive Yuan, Taiwan (NSC-95-2314-B-037-006).

Reprints and Corporate Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

To request a reprint or corporate permissions for this article, please click on the relevant link below:

Academic Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

Obtain permissions instantly via Rightslink by clicking on the button below:

If you are unable to obtain permissions via Rightslink, please complete and submit this Permissions form. For more information, please visit our Permissions help page.