Why are hairdressers, beauticians, accountants at a higher risk of ovarian cancer? study revealed

The study, published online in the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine, looked at 1,388 women aged 18-79, of whom 491 had epithelial ovarian cancer and 897 did not.

Researchers from the University of Montreal in Canada calculated participants’ exposure to specific agents in the workplace, and then assessed the association between exposure to each of the 29 most common agents and ovarian cancer risk.

After taking into account potentially influential factors, including contraceptive use and having either no or few children, they found that working 10 or more years in hairdressers, barbers, beauticians and related roles was associated with a threefold increased risk. Was.

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Working as an accountant for 10 or more years was associated with a doubled risk while working in the construction industry tripled the risk.

Similarly, working long hours in the textile industry, including embroidery, increased the risk of developing the disease by 85 percent, while working in the sales or retail industry increased the risk by 45 percent and 59 percent, respectively.

An increased risk of greater than 40 percent was observed for high cumulative exposure (8 or more years) compared with 18 different agents. These included talcum powder; ammonia; hydrogen peroxide; hair dust; synthetic fiber; polyester fiber; organic dyes and pigments; cellulose; formaldehyde; propellant gases; A naturally occurring chemical in petrol and bleach.

Hairdressers, beauticians and related workers were the jobs most exposed to 13 agents, including ammonia, hydrogen peroxide, organic dyes and pigments, and bleach, and were the second most exposed to talcum powder.

The researchers said, however, that it is unclear whether these associations were driven by a single agent, the combination, or other workplace factors.

Some occupations such as paper, printing, textile production, dry cleaning, had lower numbers of women employed in manufacturing or who were exposed to specific agents, including asbestos and pesticides, previously known potential ovarian cancer risk factors, they said. Said.

Although further studies are needed, they conclude that their results “suggest that employment in certain occupations and specific occupational exposures may be associated with an increased risk of ovarian cancer.”

The current study “reminds us that the lack of representation of women in occupational cancer studies and, indeed, potential strategies to address this issue have long been recognized, yet improvements in the study of women’s occupational exposures are needed.” It is,” said Doctor Melissa. Friesen and Laura Bean Freeman of the US National Cancer Institute in a linked commentary.

“Excluding women, we would have lost the opportunity to identify women-specific cancer risk factors, whether there are gender-specific differences in risk, and to study the risks in occupations predominantly held by women,” she added. Are.”