Transcript Ontario Cancer Facts - Cancer Care Ontario

Ontario Cancer Facts
NEWSLETTER | AUGUST 2016
SOLAR ULTRAVIOLET
RADIATION, RADON AND FINE
PARTICULATE MATTER ARE
LARGEST CONTRIBUTORS TO
ENVIRONMENTAL BURDEN OF
CANCER IN ONTARIO
According to a new report called Environmental Burden of
Cancer in Ontario, 3,540 to 6,510 new cancer cases each
year in Ontario are from exposure to 23 environmental
carcinogens. Over 90 per cent of these cancer cases are
the result of exposure to solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation,
radon and fine particulate matter.
Solar UV radiation causes all major skin cancer types,
including melanoma, the most fatal skin cancer. 1 The
report, which was released by Cancer Care Ontario and
Public Health Ontario, shows that an estimated 2,090 to
2,990 cancer cases per year are from solar UV radiation
exposure in Ontario, representing, on average, about 80
per cent of the province’s melanoma cases.
Radon is a naturally-occurring radioactive gas that is
released during the decay of uranium in soil and causes
lung cancer.1,2 Ontarians are primarily exposed to radon
from inhaling air inside buildings.2 An estimated 1,080 to
1,550 cancer cases per year are from environmental radon
exposure, which represents, on average, about 10 per cent
of Ontario’s lung cancer cases.
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5), which is defined as particles
less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter and is one
component of outdoor air pollution, has been classified as
carcinogenic in humans, specifically causing lung cancer. 3
An estimated 290 to 900 cancer cases per year in Ontario
are from environmental PM2.5. Exposure is caused by
inhaling outdoor air pollution4 from various sources,
primarily motor vehicles and industrial facilities.
Eight other carcinogens each had an estimated burden of
10 or more cancer cases per year: arsenic, acrylamide,
diesel particulate matter, asbestos, formaldehyde,
Ontario Cancer Facts
»
There are 3,540 to 6,510 new
cancer cases each year in
Ontario from exposure to 23
environmental carcinogens.
»
Three environmental carcinogens — solar
ultraviolet radiation, radon and fine particulate
matter — accounted for over 90 per cent of the
total number of cancer cases from
environmental exposures.
second-hand smoke, TCDD (2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzopara-dioxin) and chromium (VI). The remaining 12
carcinogens examined in the report were estimated to each
result in a burden of less than 10 cancer cases per year.*
The report examined exposure to these carcinogens from
different sources, including being in the sun, breathing
indoor and outdoor air, eating food, drinking water and
ingesting indoor dust (relevant for small children).
Workplace exposures were not assessed, even though
many of them intersect with the environmental carcinogens
examined in this report (e.g., exposure to asbestos in
Ontario occurs primarily in the workplace). This report also
did not assess exposures from specific behaviours (e.g.,
actively smoking cigarettes, use of tanning equipment).
Solar UV radiation, radon and PM2.5 are key areas of focus
for prevention, given the large number of new cancer cases
they are estimated to be responsible for. Potential
interventions to reduce population exposure are outlined in
the table below.
Carcinogen
Potential intervention to reduce exposure
UV
 Provide more shade through built
structures and tree canopies
 Reduce time spent outdoors during peak
UV hours
 Increase use of personal sun protection
Radon
 Incorporate preventive measures into
building codes
 Implement programs that provide public
education and support for remediation
 Test homes and buildings
PM2.5
 Implement traffic reduction strategies
 Implement tighter emission standards for
sources of PM2.5 and its precursors
 Increase the distance between areas with
concentrated combustion emissions and
where people live
*Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, cadmium, nickel, alphachlorinated toluenes and benzoyl chloride (combined exposure),
benzene, 1,3-butadiene, dichloromethane, 1,2-dichloropropane,
tetrachloroethylene, trichloroethylene, vinyl chloride and
polychlorinated biphenyls
»
These findings
may inform policy
and legislative
priorities.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
The full report is available at
www.cancercare.on.ca/environmentreport.
REFERENCES
1. International Agency for Research on Cancer. IARC
monographs on the evaluation of carcinogenic risks to
humans. Volume 100D. A review of human carcinogens.
Part D: Radiation. Lyon, FR: International Agency for
Research on Cancer; 2012.
2. National Toxicology Program (NTP). Report on
Carcinogens, 13th ed. Research Triangle Park, NC: U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health
Service; 2014.
3. International Agency for Research on Cancer. IARC
monographs on the evaluation of carcinogenic risks to
humans. Volume 109. Outdoor air pollution. Lyon, FR:
International Agency for Research on Cancer; 2015.
4. Ontario Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change.
Air Quality in Ontario 2014 Report. Toronto: Queen's
Printer for Ontario; 2015.
CITATION
Material appearing in this Cancer Fact may be reproduced or
copied without permission. The following citation must be
used:
Cancer Care Ontario. Cancer Fact. Solar ultraviolet radiation,
radon and fine particulate matter are largest contributors to
environmental burden of cancer in Ontario. August 2016.
Available at www.cancercare.on.ca/Cancerfacts.
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This Ontario Cancer Fact was prepared by staff in Prevention and Cancer Control.
www.cancercare.on.ca | Email: [email protected]