Cancer Mortality Among White Males in the Meat Industry

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Abstract
A study was conducted among 13,844 members of a meat-cutter''s union, from July 1949 to December 1980, to examine cancer occurrence in the meat industry. Separate analysis were carried out for the whole group, and for subgroups defined by job-categories characteristic of the industry, including a control group. Mortality was compared with that of the USA though the estimation of standardized mortality ratios (SMR) and proportional mortality ratios. A statistically significant proportional mortality rate of 2.9 was obtained for Hodgkin''s disease among abattoir workers; the SMR of 2.2 was not significant. Among meat-packing plant SMR of 2.2 was not significant. Among meat-packing plant workers, highly statistically significant SMRs were recorded for bone cancer, SMR = 9.6; cancer of the buccal cavity and pharynx, SMR = 3.4; and lung cancer, SMR = 1.9. The role of oncogenic viruses and other carcinogenic exposures was investigated.