Cancer Risks in New Zealand Farmers

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Abstract
Reif J (Department of Environmental Health, Colorado State University, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA), Pearce N and Fraser J. Cancer risks in New Zealand farmers. International Journal of Epidemiology 1989, 18: 768–774. Previous New Zealand case-control studies have found increased risks for leukaemia, non-Hodgkin's Iymphoma (NHL) and multiple myelome in farmers. We report here a further series of New Zealand Cancer Registry based case-control studies of farming and site-specific cancer risks. These involved 19 904 males aged 20 years or more who were registered with cancer between 1980 and 1984. For each cancer site, the registrations for other sites formed the control group. Farmers had elevated risks for melagnant melanoma (Odds Ratio [OR] = 1.25, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.05–1.50), and for cancer of the lip (OR = 2.43, 95% CI 1.81–3.27), rectum (0R = 1.19, 95% CI 103–1.38), bone (OR = 1.95, 95% CI 1.00–3.80), prostate (OR = 1.26, 95% CI 1.13–1.41) and brain (OR = 1.34, 95% CI 1.04–1.74). Decreased risks were observed for cancer of the larynx (OR = 0.66, 95% CI 0.45–0.96), lung (OR = 0.70, 95% CI 0.63–0.77) and testis (OR = 0.58, 96% CI 0.39–0.88). Livestock farmers had a relatively high risk for brain cancer, while the risk for cancer of the lip was highest among dairy farmers. Farmers also had increased risks for cancer of the lymphatic and hæmatopoietic system (International Classification of Disease 9th edn (ICD) 200–208) (OR = 1.24, 95% CI 1.08–1.42), leukaemia (OR = 1.24, 95% CI 0.99–1.55) and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) (OR = 1.24, 95% CI 0.99–1.56), as described previously.

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