TY - JOUR
T1 - Cancer incidence among pesticide applicators exposed to permethrin in the Agricultural Health Study
AU - Rusiecki, Jennifer A.
AU - Patel, Rahulkumar
AU - Koutros, Stella
AU - Beane-Freeman, Laura
AU - Landgren, Ola
AU - Bonner, Matthew R.
AU - Coble, Joseph
AU - Lubin, Jay
AU - Blair, Aaron
AU - Hoppin, Jane A.
AU - Alavanja, Michael C.R.
PY - 2009
Y1 - 2009
N2 - Background: Permethrin is a synthetic pyrethroid insecticide widely used in agriculture, in public health, and in many U.S. homes and gardens. Objective: In this study we evaluated the incidence of cancer among pesticide applicators exposed to permethrin in the Agricultural Health Study (AHS). Methods: A total of 49,093 pesticide applicators were included in this analysis of the AHS, a prospective cohort study of licensed pesticide applicators in Iowa and North Carolina. Detailed information on pesticide exposure and lifestyle factors was obtained from self-administered questionnaires completed in 1993-1997. Average length of follow-up since applicator enrollment in the cohort was 9.14 years. We used two permethrin exposure metrics: a) lifetime days applicators personally mixed or applied permethrin and b) intensity-weighted lifetime days (lifetime days weighted by estimated intensity of exposure). We used Poisson regression analysis to estimate relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for malignancies by tertiles of exposure. Results: We found no associations between permethrin and all malignant neoplasms combined, or between permethrin and melanoma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, leukemia, or cancers of the colon, rectum, lung, or prostate. We found elevated and statistically significant risks for multiple myeloma in the highest tertiles of both lifetime exposure-days (RR = 5.72; 95% CI, 2.76-11.87) and intensity-weighted lifetime exposure-days (RR = 5.01; 95% CI, 2.41-10.42), compared with applicators reporting they never used permethrin; these results are based on only 15 exposed cases. These findings were similar across a variety of alternative exposure metrics, exposure categories, and reference groups. Conclusions: This study found no association with most cancers analyzed. Although the suggested association with multiple myeloma was based on a small number of cases, it warrants further evaluation.
AB - Background: Permethrin is a synthetic pyrethroid insecticide widely used in agriculture, in public health, and in many U.S. homes and gardens. Objective: In this study we evaluated the incidence of cancer among pesticide applicators exposed to permethrin in the Agricultural Health Study (AHS). Methods: A total of 49,093 pesticide applicators were included in this analysis of the AHS, a prospective cohort study of licensed pesticide applicators in Iowa and North Carolina. Detailed information on pesticide exposure and lifestyle factors was obtained from self-administered questionnaires completed in 1993-1997. Average length of follow-up since applicator enrollment in the cohort was 9.14 years. We used two permethrin exposure metrics: a) lifetime days applicators personally mixed or applied permethrin and b) intensity-weighted lifetime days (lifetime days weighted by estimated intensity of exposure). We used Poisson regression analysis to estimate relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for malignancies by tertiles of exposure. Results: We found no associations between permethrin and all malignant neoplasms combined, or between permethrin and melanoma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, leukemia, or cancers of the colon, rectum, lung, or prostate. We found elevated and statistically significant risks for multiple myeloma in the highest tertiles of both lifetime exposure-days (RR = 5.72; 95% CI, 2.76-11.87) and intensity-weighted lifetime exposure-days (RR = 5.01; 95% CI, 2.41-10.42), compared with applicators reporting they never used permethrin; these results are based on only 15 exposed cases. These findings were similar across a variety of alternative exposure metrics, exposure categories, and reference groups. Conclusions: This study found no association with most cancers analyzed. Although the suggested association with multiple myeloma was based on a small number of cases, it warrants further evaluation.
KW - Agriculture
KW - Cancer
KW - Multiple myeloma
KW - Occupation
KW - Permethrin
KW - Pesticide applicator
KW - Pesticides
KW - Pyrethroid
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=64049117839&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1289/ehp.11318
DO - 10.1289/ehp.11318
M3 - Article
C2 - 19440497
AN - SCOPUS:64049117839
SN - 0091-6765
VL - 117
SP - 581
EP - 586
JO - Environmental Health Perspectives
JF - Environmental Health Perspectives
IS - 4
ER -