POLYCYCLIC AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS (PAHs): A POSSIBLE CAUSE OF LUNG CANCER MORTALITY AMONG NICKEL/COPPER SMELTER AND REFINERY WORKERS

A retrospective industrial hygiene investigation was undertaken to explain the cause of a statistically significant excess lung cancer mortality observed in a subset of a large cohort of nickel workers involved in mining, smelting, and refining of nickel and copper in Ontario. The focus of this paper is to demonstrate how an industrial hygiene follow-up assessment of an epidemiologic finding can help to identify a likely cause. Polycyclic …