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Health See other Health Articles Title: Cancer Is Now Top Cause of Job-Related Death in Canada Medscape: Occupational cancer has become the leading cause of compensated work-related deaths in Canada, according to a new report. Since 1997, the number of compensated claims for occupational cancer deaths has dramatically increased and now surpasses those for traumatic injuries. This trend, note the authors, appears to be most "notable" in the province of Ontario, where occupational cancer deaths surpass those for traumatic injury 2 to 1. The study is published online in CMAJ Open. This may not even be the full picture. "Although the number of accepted claims for deaths from occupational cancers has increased in recent years, these claims still only represent a fraction of the true burden of this problem," write study authors Ann Del Bianco, PhD, and Paul A. Demers, PhD, Occupational Cancer Research Centre, York University, Toronto. "Increased education of patients, workers at high risk of exposure and health care providers is needed to ensure that people with work-related cancer are identified and file a claim for compensation," they add. "Physicians can play a key role in identifying individual cases and assisting their patients with compensation by being aware of their patients' hazardous exposures and being vigilant for early signs of work-related disease," the authors comment. "By adopting a model in which physicians are more involved with the active surveillance of occupational cancers, and in which the current and projected burden of occupational cancer has been more systematically assessed, Canada can be in a position where efforts are aimed at eliminating or minimizing occupational exposures and preventing these cancers from occurring." Occupational Lung Cancer Deaths From 2006 and 2010, there were 402 accepted claims for occupational lung cancer deaths in Ontario alone, and 626 nationwide. It is estimated that 33,400 deaths from lung cancer occurred during that period in Ontario, and that 100,600 occurred in all of Canada. Therefore, the authors note, 1.2% of lung cancers in Ontario and 0.6% of lung cancers in Canada were occupational cancers causing death for which claims resulted in compensation. Using data from the Association of Workers' Compensation Boards of Canada, Dr. Del Bianco and Dr. Demers assessed trends in deaths due to occupational cancer, high-risk industries, and exposures, along with the commonly compensated categories of occupational cancers. They also compared the data on compensated claims for deaths from occupational lung cancer with estimated lung cancer deaths for 2006–2010 (published in Canadian Cancer Statistics). Ontario Driving Force Ontario was the main driving force for national trends in compensated claims for deaths from occupational cancer; it accounted for 52.5% to 65.0% of all compensated claims in this category from 1997 to 2010, except for 1998, when it accounted for 46.2%. During this period, there was a 216.4% increase in accepted claims for mesothelioma, a 575.0% increase in accepted claims for lung cancer, and a 512.5% increase in accepted claims for other cancers in Canada. In Ontario, there were increases in claims for both mesothelioma and lung cancer, and those for lung cancer occasionally exceeded those for mesothelioma. This was not seen in the overall nationwide trends, which showed that the number of accepted claims for mesothelioma was consistently higher than that for lung cancer. In Ontario, there was a 97.7% increase in accepted claims for mesothelioma, a 383.3% increase in accepted claims for lung cancer, and a 1300.0% increase in accepted claims for other cancers during this period. null About 70.8% of accepted occupational cancer death claims in Canada involved exposure to asbestos, and a similar percentage was seen within the same period in Ontario (70.6%). Over time, claims for mesothelioma and lung cancer (combined) accounted for up to 98.4% of all compensated claims for deaths from occupational cancer in Ontario and up to 87.3% of such claims in Canada. In the final 5 years of the study period, about 93.0% of all claims for asbestos-related deaths in Canada that resulted in compensation were attributed to mesothelioma or lung cancer; the corresponding proportion for such claims in Ontario during the same period was 88.7%. As of 2010, claims for asbestos-related lung cancer accounted for about 69.6% of compensated lung cancer deaths in Canada and about 73.6% of such deaths in Ontario. The study was conducted by the Occupational Cancer Research Centre, which is based in Cancer Care Ontario, and is further funded by the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board of Ontario and the Ontario Division of the Canadian Cancer Society. The authors have disclosed no relevant financial relationships. CMAJ Open. Published online August 8, 2013. Full article Post Comment Private Reply Ignore Thread
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