EU Survey Characterizes Worker Exposures to Cancer Risk Factors
More than 46 million workers in six European Union member states are probably exposed to at least one of 24 cancer risk factors, according to the results of a large survey conducted by the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA). The Workers’ Exposure Survey, or WES, sought information on exposures to industrial chemicals, process-generated substances, mixtures, and physical risk factors and characterized their exposures as low, medium, or high.
The survey involved 24,000 phone interviews conducted between September 2022 and February 2023 with workers in Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, and Spain. Researchers asked workers about their exposures over the most recent working week, weighted the data for representativeness, and used web-based software to estimate probabilities. EU-OSHA states that the data represents more than 98 million workers.
The most common exposure was to ultraviolet radiation, which affected nearly 21 percent of workers. Other common exposures included diesel engine exhaust, benzene, respirable crystalline silica, and formaldehyde.
Approximately 11 percent of workers had high exposures to at least one cancer risk factor, according to the survey results. High exposures were most frequent for respirable crystalline silica, diesel engine exhaust, wood dust, benzene, and formaldehyde. Self-employed and temporary workers typically faced higher exposures to wood dust, ethylene oxide, and asbestos, while female healthcare workers had higher exposures to formaldehyde.
More than 26 percent of workers reported exposure to at least two cancer risk factors.
Workers in laboratories and the chemical and pharmaceutical industries reported consistent use of controls such as system enclosures, local exhaust ventilation, and personal protective equipment. The survey suggests minimal use of controls in construction and maintenance for tasks involving diesel engine exhaust, benzene, respirable crystalline silica, and asbestos.
“Every year, more than 100 000 people in the EU lose their lives to work-related cancer,” said William Cockburn, EU-OSHA’s executive director. “These findings reveal significant gaps in prevention and an urgent need for targeted, evidence-based interventions to protect workers' health and reduce the burden of occupational cancer across Europe.”
For more information and to access the report, visit the EU-OSHA website.