Environmental and Occupational Exposures

Numerous chemicals, dusts, and physical agents that are widespread in the general and workplace environments have potential for causing cancers in exposed humans. Identification of cancer risks often begins with case reports that prompt formal epidemiologic studies to establish dose-response relations, which are required for risk assessment and ultimately, for disease prevention. This chapter presents several illustrative examples of epidemiologic characterization of cancer risks related to environmental exposures that have been classified as confirmed human carcinogens: formaldehyde, wood dust, and polychlorinated biphenyls. Recommendations are offered for future strategies to identify previously unrecognized environmental carcinogens.