Risk of lung cancer and exposure to industrial acids, solvents, and metals in Leningrad Province, Russia

Objective: We sought to investigate the association of occupational exposure to industrial acids, solvents, and metals with lung cancer in Leningrad Province, Russia, where an excess of occupationally related lung cancer was reported recently. Methods: We identified 540 pathologically diagnosed lung cancer cases and 582 controls from the 1993-1998 autopsy records of the 88 Leningrad Province hospitals. Lifetime job-specific exposure measurements were available for 12 industrial acids, 15 solvents, and 17 metals. Results: Exposures were frequent in the study group and mostly occurred after World War II. However, lung cancer risks for industrial acids (odds ratio [OR]= 1.2; 95% confidence interval [CI]= 0.8-1.7), solvents (OR= 0.8; 95% CI= 0.6-1.2), and metals (OR= 0.8; 95% CI= 0.5-1.0) were not increased. Also, no significant excess risk was found for any of the specific agents investigated. Conclusions: The excess of occupationally related lung cancer in the Province is not explained by exposure to the agents investigated.