Mortality Among Employees of an Ontario Asbestos-Cement Factory1,2

Mortality among 535 asbestos-exposed and 205 nonexposed employees of an asbestos-cement factory was investigated. In the period beyond 20 yr from first exposure, the exposed workers had standardized mortality ratios of 175 for all causes of death, 370 for all malignancies, 480 for lung cancer, 240 for gastrointestinal cancers, and 17 deaths from mesothelioma; the factory control subjects had mortality rates similar to the general population. …