Occupational Exposure to Pesticides With Occupational Sun Exposure Increases the Risk for Cutaneous Melanoma

OBJECTIVE

The objective of the study was to examine the association between occupational exposure to pesticides and cutaneous melanoma, controlling for all possible confounders.

METHODS

A pooled analysis of two case-control studies was conducted in two different geographic areas (Italy and Brazil). Detailed pesticides exposure histories were obtained.

RESULTS

Ever use of any pesticide was associated with a high risk of cutaneous melanoma (odds ratio 2.58; 95% confidence interval 1.18-5.65) in particular exposure to herbicides (glyphosate) and fungicides (mancozeb, maneb), after controlling for confounding factors. When subjects were exposed to both pesticides and occupational sun exposure, the risk increased even more (odds ratio 4.68; 95% confidence interval 1.29-17.0).

CONCLUSIONS

The study suggests an augmented risk of cutaneous melanoma among subjects with exposure to pesticides, in particular among those exposed to occupational sun exposure.

The association between residential pesticide use and cutaneous melanoma

Occupational pesticide exposure has been linked to cutaneous melanoma in epidemiological studies. We studied the association between cutaneous melanoma and the residential use of pesticides. This is a case-control study of cutaneous melanoma (287 incident cases; 299 controls). Data on pesticide use was obtained with a standardised interview. An increased risk of melanoma was found for high use (4 times annually) of indoor pesticides (odds ratio (OR)=2.18; 95% confidence intervals (CI) 1.07-4.43) compared to low use (1 times annually), after adjustment for sex, age, education, sun exposure and pigmentary characteristics. Subjects exposed for 10 years or more had two and a half times the risk (OR=2.46; 95% CI 1.23-4.94) of those exposed for less than 10 years. A dose response was observed for the intensity of pesticides use (p(trend)=0.027). The results indicate that residential pesticide exposure may be an independent risk factor for cutaneous melanoma.