Objectives The aim of this study was to describe the cancer risk pattern of male and female Finnish farmers and to define the role of the type of farm production as a risk determinant.Methods All farmers on 31 December 1978 living on 1 January 1995 were included in the cohort. The data concerning continuation as a farmer and the type of farming was collected from the 31 December 1990 and 1994 farm registries. The observed number of cases in each stratum was divided by the respective expected number based on national incidence rates to calculate the standardized incidence ratio. ResultsThe overall cancer incidence was smaller than that of the general population. For most of the cancer sites, the standardized incidence ratios were below 1.0. The lowest rates for farmers continuing to farm were determined for mesothelioma and cancers of the liver, larynx, lung, nose, esophagus, and urinary bladder. The only significantly elevated standardized incidence ratio was that for lip cancer. Permanent beef and dairy farmers had the lowest standardized incidence ratios for overall cancer. Dairy farmers of 1978 who had changed their production type to crop farmers had increased their risk for overall cancer from a standardized incidence ratio of 0.82 to 0.92. ConclusionsThe cancer incidence of Finnish farmers was significantly below the national average. The finding that lung cancer risk was low among dairy farmers but increased with a change to another type of farm production gives some support to the hypothesis that endotoxin exposure may decrease cancer risk.

Background: There is inconclusive evidence concerning cancer risks of organic dusts. Aim: The carcinogenic exposures are mainly inhalatory and the authors therefore studied associations between occupational exposure to eight different organic dusts and respiratory cancers in Finland. Methods: The authors followed up a cohort of all economically active Finns born between 1906 and 1945 for 30 million person-years during 1971-95. Incident cases of nasal, laryngeal, and lung cancer and mesotheliomas were identified through a record linkage with the Finnish Cancer Registry. Occupations from the population census in 1970 were converted to exposures to eight organic dusts with a jobexposure matrix (FINJEM). Cumulative exposure (CE) was calculated as a product of prevalence, level, and estimated duration of exposure. Standardised incidence ratios (SIR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) adjusted for age, period, and social class were calculated for each organic dust using the economically active population as the reference. Results: A total of 20 426 incident cases of respiratory cancer were observed. Slightly increased risk was observed among men exposed to wood dust for nasal cancer (SIR 1.42, 95% CI 0.79 to 2.44). For laryngeal cancer, men exposed to plant dust (mainly grain millers) had a raised SIR in the high exposure class (SIR 3.55, 95% CI 1.30 to 7.72). Men exposed to wood dust had a raised SIR for lung cancer, but only in the low exposure class (SIR 1.11, 95% CI 1.04 to 1.18). Women exposed to wood dust showed an increased SIR for mesotheliomas in the low exposure class (SIR 4.57, 95% CI 1.25 to 11.7) and some excess in the medium exposure category. Conclusions: Exposure to organic dusts is unlikely to be a major risk factor of respiratory cancer. Even exposure to wood dust which is a major exposure in Finland seems to have minor effect for nasal cancer. The authors found suggestive evidence that exposure to grain dust may increase the risk of laryngeal cancer, and some support to the hypothesis that exposure to textile dust, and to plant and animal dust (agricultural dusts) may decrease the risk of lung cancer.

Occupational cancer risks suggested among food industry workers are inconclusive. The objective of our study was to assess associations between different cancers and working in the food industry in Finland. The carcinogenic exposures are mainly inhalatory, and we were therefore interested in respiratory cancers in particular. We followed up a cohort of all economically active Finns born between 1906 and 1945 for 30 million person-years during 1971-95. The 1970 Census data on occupations were linked with data on subsequent incident cancer cases. Standardized incidence ratios (SIR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated for each occupation using the economically active population as the reference. A total of 2,526 incident cancer cases were observed. Elevated risks were observed among male food industry workers for pancreatic (SIR 5 1.50, CI 5 1.13-1.96) and kidney cancers (1.51, 1.16-1.94). With respect to specific occupations, there was an excess of lung cancer among female bakers (1.38, 1.01-1.85) and laryngeal cancer among male grain millers (2.60, 1.05-5.36). Occupational exposure is unlikely to be a major risk factor for cancer among Finnish workers employed in typical food industry occupations. ' 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc.Key words: cancer; food industry; occupational exposureThe food industry covers a series of industrial activities involving processing, conversion, preparation, preservation and packaging of foodstuffs. The raw materials used are generally of vegetable or animal origin and produced by farming, breeding and fishing. Respiratory disorders, skin diseases and contact allergies, hearing impairment and musculoskeletal disorders are among the most common occupational health problems in the food industry.

Exposures at the investigated concentrations to either moulds or bacteria are unlikely to be major risk factors of cancer, although suggestions of risk increases were observed for some cancer types. It has been suggested previously that the decreased risk for lung cancer is due to the protective effect of endotoxins.