An examination of the association between lifetime history of prostate and pancreatic cancer diagnosis and occupation in a population sample of Canadians

Occupational exposure to diesel exhausts and liver and pancreatic cancers: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Diesel exhaust (DE) is human carcinogen with sufficient evidence only for lung cancer. Systematic evidence on other cancer types is scarce, thus we aimed to systematically review current literature on the association between occupational DE exposure and risk of liver and pancreatic cancers.

METHODS

We performed a systematic literature review to identify cohort studies on occupational DE exposure and risk of cancers other than lung. We computed pooled relative risks (RRs) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for liver and pancreatic cancers using DerSimonian and Laird random-effects model.

RESULTS

Fifteen studies reporting results on pancreatic cancer and fourteen on liver cancer were included. We found a weakly increased risk of pancreatic cancer in workers exposed to DE (RR: 1.07, 95% CI: 1.00, 1.14), mainly driven by results on incidence (RR: 1.11, 95% CI: 1.02, 1.22). As for liver cancer, results were suggestive of a positive association (RR: 1.09; 95% CI: 0.99, 1.19), although a significant estimate was present in studies published before 2000 (RR: 1.41; 95% CI: 1.09, 1.82). We found no compelling evidence of publication bias.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings suggest an association between occupational DE exposure and liver and pancreatic cancer. Further studies with detailed exposure assessment, environmental monitoring data, and appropriate control for confounders are warranted.

Administrative data linkage in Canada: Implications for sociological research

This paper explores some of the implications that administrative data, defined as data initially collected for purposes other than research, will have for Sociology. Although administrative data are "found" rather than "made" and, in turn, pose several challenges, we argue that the potential of these data warrant the investment, and may lead to a new methodological imagination that can shed a light on time-tested concepts and advance our understanding of society. We show that it is already possible to advance several sociological debates through the use of administrative data and demonstrate the potential of these data through some examples drawn from classical sociological theory. We conclude by arguing that administrative data's potential will likely ensure that it becomes an important component of sociological research agendas in the coming years.