Investigation of brain and lymphopoietic cancer at a Union Carbide plant in Seadrift, Texas

Technical Report · Sat Sep 10 04:00:00 EDT 1983

OSTI ID:5110618

Reeve, G R; Waxweiler, R J; Leffingwell, S S

A possible excess of brain and lymphopoietic cancer mortality occurring among employees of a petrochemical facility in Texas was investigated. One brain cancer death and a possible cluster of five lymphopoietic cancer deaths had been reported at the facility. The facility was a diversified chemical production site. No brain or lymphopoietic cancer deaths were identified other than those initially reported. The results of a proportionate mortality study and a preliminary-sample-based cohort-mortality study suggested that there were excesses in the number of lymphopoietic cancer deaths among the employee population. For lymphopoietic cancer the proportionate mortality ratio was 666 and the preliminary estimate of the standardized mortality ratio was 291. A case/control study of facility employees indicated that there was evidence of an association between lymphopoietic cancer mortality, particularly Hodgkin's disease, and the assignment of the worker to areas in the facility where low density polyethylene was produced. The low-density polyethylene production was started in 1954. However, any conclusion that the excess of lymphopoietic deaths may have been due to employment in this area of the facility was weakened by the long-term employment of one case at a different chemical facility, the limited number of cases, and the calendar distribution of the Hodgkin's disease deaths.

• Research Organization: National Inst. for Occupational Safety and Health, Cincinnati, OH (USA)
• OSTI ID: 5110618
• Report Number(s): PB-90-129875/XAB
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

02 PETROLEUM
020900* -- Petroleum-- Environmental Aspects
03 NATURAL GAS
030800 -- Natural Gas-- Environmental Aspects
550900 -- Pathology
59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
BODY
BRAIN
CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM
CHEMICAL PLANTS
DISEASES
HODGKINS DISEASE
IMMUNE SYSTEM DISEASES
INDUSTRIAL PLANTS
LYMPHOMAS
MORTALITY
NEOPLASMS
NERVOUS SYSTEM
OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC POLYMERS
ORGANS
PETROCHEMICAL PLANTS
POLYETHYLENES
POLYMERS
POLYOLEFINS
RISK ASSESSMENT