Canadian Cancer Society-funded research delves into work-related cancers

TORONTO, ON –��The Canadian Cancer Society (CCS) and partners are funding four new research projects that will study the risks of common occupational cancers and explore better prevention strategies.

The projects will be supported through $800,000 in funding. The current round of CCS Workplace Cancer Research Grants brings researchers together with support from labour unions and workers’ compensation boards and will delve into the health effects of working with anticancer drugs, lung cancer prevention for construction workers, how common work-related lung and skin cancers are across industries and what those cancers cost individuals and health care systems.��

“Each year, about 10,000 Canadian workers are diagnosed with occupational cancers,” says Dr. Stuart Edmonds, executive vice president, mission, research and advocacy at CCS, in a statement. “These grants will help us understand how and why these cancers occur so that we can amplify our efforts to better prevent, detect and treat them – saving lives and keeping workers in Canada safe.”��

Here are some more specifics on the projects.

Working with anti-lung cancer among construction workers

People who work in building repair or renovation may be exposed to asbestos, which can cause lung cancer.

Although some workers with high exposure are notified of the need for a medical exam, it’s unclear how many actually undergo lung cancer screening or how their health compares to that of other construction workers, the release describes.

Ontario Health grant recipient Dr. Nathan DeBono and his team will analyze existing information to find ways of improving cancer prevention and screening for this at-risk group.��

Understanding occupational lung cancer��

A 2012 study showed more than 4,000 lung cancer cases in Canada each year were linked to the workplace – but that study is now out of date.

Dr. Paul Demers and his team at Ontario Health are studying the latest statistics to estimate how many work-related lung cancers are likely to arise in 2026, what substances may cause them and how much these cancers cost workers and health care systems.

Skin cancer and the workplace��

Outdoor workers are about three times as likely to develop skin cancer as indoor workers, but few provinces track these cancers.

Those that do usually record only the first diagnosis – even though these cancers often come back, the release notes.

Grant recipient Dr. Cheryl Peters and her BC Centre for Disease Control team are using existing data and medical records to estimate the rates and costs of skin cancers caused by workplace sun exposure. Their goal is to guide national efforts to reduce sun exposure and prevent future cases.��

Cancer drugs��

Cancer drugs can be toxic to healthy cells, which means that even healthy individuals who come into contact with them may face risks of cancer or other serious health effects.

Dr. Hugh Davies is leading a team at the University of British Columbia to study how much contact health care workers have with these drugs in different environments. The goal is to better understand the risk of exposure and help make workplaces safer for health care professionals.��

To learn more about these grants and the selected projects, visit .��

Partners involved in the studies are as follows: ��