This study, conducted within the Spanish Consortium for Biomedical Research in Epidemiology & Public Health (CIBERESP), is a unique initiative to evaluate etiological factors for common cancers and will promote cancer research and prevention in Spain.

Night shift work has been classified as a probable human carcinogen based on experimental studies and limited human evidence on breast cancer. Evidence on other common cancers, such as prostate cancer, is scarce. Chronotype is an individual characteristic that may relate to night work adaptation. We evaluated night shift work with relation to prostate cancer, taking into account chronotype and disease severity in a population based case-control study in Spain. We included 1,095 prostate cancer cases and 1,388 randomly selected population controls. We collected detailed information on shift schedules (permanent vs. rotating, time schedules, duration, frequency), using lifetime occupational history. Sociodemographic and lifestyle factors were assessed by face-to-face interviews and chronotype through a validated questionnaire. We used unconditional logistic regression analysis adjusting for potential confounders. Subjects who had worked at least for one year in night shift work had a slightly higher prostate cancer risk [Odds Ratio (OR) 1.14; 95%CI 0.94, 1.37] compared with never night workers; this risk increased with longer duration of exposure ( 28 years: OR 1.37; 95%CI 1.05, 1.81; p-trend 5 0.047). Risks were more pronounced for high risk tumors [D'Amico classification, Relative Risk Ratio (RRR) 1.40; 95%CI 1.05, 1.86], particularly among subjects with longer duration of exposure ( 28 years: RRR 1.63; 95%CI 1.08, 2.45; p-trend 5 0.027). Overall risk was higher among subjects with an evening chronotype, but also increased in morning chronotypes after long-term night work. In this large population based study, we found an association between night shift work and prostate cancer particularly for tumors with worse prognosis.

BackgroundThis paper examines the association between use of protective devices, frequency of acute health problems and health-protection information received by participants engaged in the Prestige oil spill clean-up in Asturias and Cantabria, Spain.MethodsWe studied 133 seamen, 135 bird cleaners, 266 volunteers and 265 paid workers selected by random sampling, stratified by type of worker and number of working days. Information was collected by telephone interview conducted in June 2003. The association of interest was summarized, using odds ratios (OR) obtained from logistic regression.ResultsHealth-protection briefing was associated with use of protective devices and clothing. Uninformed subjects registered a significant excess risk of itchy eyes (OR:2.89; 95%CI:1.21–6.90), nausea/vomiting/dizziness (OR:2.25; 95%CI:1.17–4.32) and throat and respiratory problems (OR:2.30; 95%CI:1.15–4.61). There was a noteworthy significant excess risk of headaches (OR:3.86: 95%CI:1.74–8.54) and respiratory problems (OR:2.43; 95%CI:1.02–5.79) among uninformed paid workers. Seamen, the group most exposed to the fuel-oil, were the worst informed and registered the highest frequency of toxicological problems.ConclusionProper health-protection briefing was associated with greater use of protective devices and lower frequency of health problems. Among seamen, however, the results indicate poorer dissemination of information and the need of specific guidelines for removing fuel-oil at sea.

Background:Night shift work, exposure to light at night (ALAN) and circadian disruption may increase the risk of hormone-dependent cancers.Objectives:We evaluated the association of exposure to ALAN during sleeping time with breast and prostate cancer in a population based multicase–control study (MCC-Spain), among subjects who had never worked at night. We evaluated chronotype, a characteristic that may relate to adaptation to light at night.Methods:We enrolled 1,219 breast cancer cases, 1,385 female controls, 623 prostate cancer cases, and 879 male controls from 11 Spanish regions in 2008–2013. Indoor ALAN information was obtained through questionnaires. Outdoor ALAN was analyzed using images from the International Space Station (ISS) available for Barcelona and Madrid for 2012–2013, including data of remotely sensed upward light intensity and blue light spectrum information for each geocoded longest residence of each MCC-Spain subject.Results:Among Barcelona and Madrid participants with information on both indoor and outdoor ALAN, exposure to outdoor ALAN in the blue light spectrum was associated with breast cancer [adjusted odds ratio (OR) for highest vs. lowest tertile, OR=1.47; 95% CI: 1.00, 2.17] and prostate cancer (OR=2.05; 95% CI: 1.38, 3.03). In contrast, those exposed to the highest versus lowest intensity of outdoor ALAN were more likely to be controls than cases, particularly for prostate cancer. Compared with those who reported sleeping in total darkness, men who slept in “quite illuminated” bedrooms had a higher risk of prostate cancer (OR=2.79; 95% CI: 1.55, 5.04), whereas women had a slightly lower risk of breast cancer (OR=0.77; 95% CI: 0.39, 1.51).Conclusion:Both prostate and breast cancer were associated with high estimated exposure to outdoor ALAN in the blue-enriched light spectrum. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP1837

Background: Placental tissue may furnish information on the exposure of both mother and fetus. Mercury (Hg), cadmium (Cd), and lead (Pb) are toxicants of interest in pregnancy because they are associated with alterations in child development.Objectives: The aim of this study was to summarize the available information regarding total Hg, Cd, and Pb levels in human placenta and possible related factors.Methods: We performed a systematic search of PubMed/MEDLINE, EMBASE, Lilacs, OSH, and Web of Science for original papers on total Hg, Cd, or Pb levels in human placenta that were published in English or Spanish (1976–2011). Data on study design, population characteristics, collection and analysis of placenta specimens, and main results were extracted using a standardized form.Results: We found a total of 79 papers (73 different studies). Hg, Cd, and Pb levels were reported in 24, 46, and 46 studies, respectively. Most studies included small convenience samples of healthy pregnant women. Studies were heterogeneous regarding populations selected, processing of specimens, and presentation of results. Hg concentrations > 50 ng/g were found in China (Shanghai), Japan, and the Faroe Islands. Cd levels ranged from 1.2 ng/g to 53 ng/g and were highest in the United States, Japan, and Eastern Europe. Pb showed the greatest variability, with levels ranging from 1.18 ng/g in China (Shanghai) to 500 ng/g in a polluted area of Poland.Conclusion: The use of the placenta as a biomarker to assess heavy metals exposure is not properly developed because of heterogeneity among the studies. International standardized protocols are needed to enhance comparability and increase the usefulness of this promising tissue in biomonitoring studies.

Tobacco smoking is a known cause of gastric cancer, but several aspects of the association remain imprecisely quantified. We examined the relation between cigarette smoking and the risk of gastric cancer using a uniquely large dataset of 23 epidemiological studies within the 'Stomach cancer Pooling (StoP) Project' , including 10 290 cases and 26 145 controls. We estimated summary odds ratios (ORs) and the corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) by pooling study-specific ORs using random-effects models. Compared with never smokers, the ORs were 1.20 (95% CI: 1.09-1.32) for ever, 1.12 (95% CI: 0.99-1.27) for former, and 1.25 (95% CI: 1.11-1.40) for current cigarette smokers. Among current smokers, the risk increased with number of cigarettes per day to reach an OR of 1.32 (95% CI: 1.10-1.58) for smokers of more than 20 cigarettes per day. The risk increased with duration of smoking, to reach an OR of 1.33 (95% CI: 1.14-1.54) for more than 40 years of smoking and decreased with increasing time since stopping cigarette smoking (P for trend < 0.01) and became similar to that of never smokers 10 years after stopping. Risks were somewhat higher for cardia than noncardia gastric cancer. Risks were similar when considering only studies with information on Helicobacter pylori infection and comparing all cases to H. pylori + controls only. This study provides the most precise estimate of the detrimental effect of cigarette smoking on the risk of gastric cancer on the basis of individual data, including the relationship with dose and duration, and the decrease in risk following stopping smoking.

BackgroundThe European Pollutant Emission Register in Spain (EPER-Spain) is a public inventory of pollutant industries created by decision of the European Union. The location of these industries is geocoded and the first published data correspond to 2001. Publication of these data will allow for quantification of the effect of proximity to one or more such plant on cancer and all-cause mortality observed in nearby towns. However, as errors have been detected in the geocoding of many of the pollutant foci shown in the EPER, it was decided that a validation study should be conducted into the accuracy of these co-ordinates. EPER-Spain geographic co-ordinates were drawn from the European Environment Agency (EEA) server and the Spanish Ministry of the Environment (MOE). The Farm Plot Geographic Information System (Sistema de Información Geográfica de Parcelas Agrícolas) (SIGPAC) enables orthophotos (digitalized aerial images) of any territorial point across Spain to be obtained. Through a search of co-ordinates in the SIGPAC, all the industrial foci (except farms) were located. The quality criteria used to ascertain possible errors in industrial location were high, medium and low quality, where industries were situated at a distance of less than 500 metres, more than 500 metres but less than 1 kilometre, and more than 1 kilometre from their real locations, respectively.ResultsInsofar as initial registry quality was concerned, 84% of industrial complexes were inaccurately positioned (low quality) according to EEA data versus 60% for Spanish MOE data. The distribution of the distances between the original and corrected co-ordinates for each of the industries on the registry revealed that the median error was 2.55 kilometres for Spain overall (according to EEA data). The Autonomous Regions that displayed most errors in industrial geocoding were Murcia, Canary Islands, Andalusia and Madrid. Correct co-ordinates were successfully allocated to 100% of EPER-Spain industries.ConclusionKnowing the exact location of pollutant foci is vital to obtain reliable and valid conclusions in any study where distance to the focus is a decisive factor, as in the case of the consequences of industrial pollution on the health of neighbouring populations.

This study supports the relationship previously suggested between SC and occupational exposure to dusty and high temperature environments. Several occupations may also increase the risk of diffuse SC but not the intestinal subtype.