Burying the evidence the great workplace cancer cover up www'hazards'orgcancer

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Burying the evidencethe great workplace cancer
cover upwww.hazards.org/cancer
Rory ONeillCancer and work conferenceGlasgow14
September 2006
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Cancer an ongoing problem
Cancer is a very modern killer. - Now accounts
for about 25 per cent of all deaths, compared
with15 per cent in 1950 and less than 5 per cent
in 1901. Lung cancer reports were relatively
rare at the start of the 21st century. It did not
even have an International Classification of
Diseases (ICD) code until 1940.
Cancer is almost certainly Britains biggest
public health failure Cancer death rates in the
UK have changed little since 1950, compared to
the declines in the other major causes of death
heart disease, stroke and infectious diseases.
Cancer became the most common UK cause of death
in females from 1969 and in males from 1995.
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Whats the real work cancer figure?
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What causes these work cancers?
A September 2005 University of Massachusetts
Lowell report identified examples of strong
causal links between environmental and
occupational exposures and cancer, many of which
are commonly encountered in UK workplaces today,
including

• Metals such as arsenic, chromium and nickel and
  cancers of the bladder, lung, and skin.
• Chlorination byproducts such as trihalomethanes
  and bladder cancer.
• Natural fibres such as asbestos and cancers of
  the larynx, lung, mesothelioma, and stomach.
• Petrochemicals and combustion products,
  including motor vehicle exhaust and polycyclic
  aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and cancers of the
  bladder, lung, and skin.
• Pesticide exposures and cancers of the brain,
  Wilms tumour, leukaemia, and non-Hodgkins
  lymphoma.

• Reactive chemicals such as vinyl chloride and
  liver cancer and soft tissue sarcoma.
  Metalworking fluids and mineral oils and cancers
  of the bladder, larynx, nasal passages, rectum,
  skin, and stomach. Ionising radiation and
  cancers of the bladder, bone, brain, breast,
  liver, lung, ovary, skin, and thyroid, as well as
  leukaemia, multiple myeloma, and sarcomas.
  Solvents such as benzene and leukaemia and
  non-Hodgkins lymphoma tetrachloroethylene and
  bladder cancer and trichloroethylene and
  Hodgkins disease, leukaemia, and kidney and
  liver cancers. Environmental tobacco smoke and
  cancers of the breast and lung.

Richard Clapp, Genevieve Howe, Molly Jacobs
Lefevre. Environmental and occupational causes of
cancer A review of recent Scientific literature.
Lowell Center for Sustainable Production,
University of Massachusetts Lowell, September
2005. http//www.sustainableproduction.org/cancer-
summary.shtml
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What does this all mean?
Based on the recent US and Australian papers, we
can produce more realistic guesstimates of the
cases per year for occupational cancer.
Bronchus and lung UK 3,750 Scotland
300 Mesothelioma UK 2,000 Scotland
200 Prostate UK 1,500 Scotland 120
Bladder UK 750 Scotland 60 Colon UK 650
Scotland 55
Leukaemia UK 650 Scotland 55 Non-Hodgkins
lymphoma UK 620 Scotland 50 Melanoma UK 450
Scotland 40 Pancreas UK 300 Scotland
25 Stomach UK 300 Scotland 25
Breast cancer UK 450 Scotland 40
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What do we want? Policy

• Occupational cancer prevention should be
  recognised by the government as a major public
  health priority and should be allocated resources
  accordingly. A national occupational cancer
  and carcinogens awareness campaign should be
  launched as a matter of urgency. The Health
  and Safety Executive should convene a tripartite
  working party, including representatives of
  unions, health and safety campaign organisations
  and occupational disease victims and advocacy
  organisations, to review its occupational cancer
  strategy.

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Whats this all mean?

• We are under-estimating the risks, so we are not
  prioritising prevention
• We are not providing workplace surveillance for
  risks or for early signs of possible health
  problems, for example sentinel health events
• We are not providing far and prompt compensation
  for those affected by occupational cancer most
  people receive nothing
• We are not enforcing effectively existing health
  and safety laws.
• We are not allowing workers the time and
  training to maximise the union safety effect.
• Without addressing these problems, the
  occupational cancer epidemic will continue for a
  further working generation.
• None of this will happen unless we make
  alliances and we make a stink.