Petrochemicals linked to leukaemia

Residential exposure to petrochemicals is associated with an elevated risk of leukaemia among adults in their 20s. Previous studies have linked workplace exposure to petrochemicals with an increased risk of leukaemia. By contrast, relatively few studies have looked at the impact on leukaemia risk of petrochemical exposure in places where people reside, and the studies that have done so included only crude measures of exposure. Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, USA, looked at this issue in Kaohsiung, southern Taiwan, an area with four oil refineries. The study, which included 171 patients with leukaemia and 410 unaffected control subjects, focused on the risk in those aged up to 19 years and those between 20 and 29. The researchers used geographic information tools to develop a procedure for estimating petrochemical exposure at the individual level. The exposure measurement accounted for a number of factors, including how much people moved around, their length of stay at each residence, distance to petrochemical plants, prevailing wind direction on a monthly basis, and the effect of multiple pollution sources. Residential exposure to petrochemicals was not linked to leukaemia in the younger age group. However, in the older group, as the exposure opportunity score increased by one unit, the risk of leukaemia rose by 54 percent. The researchers suggest that future studies consider other sources of indoor or mobile pollution to better understand the carcinogenic effects of petrochemical exposure.