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A Case-Control Study of Occupational Exposure to Trichloroethylene and Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

A Case-Control Study of Occupational Exposure to Trichloroethylene and Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma

Mark P. Purdue, Berit Bakke, Patricia Stewart, Anneclaire J. De Roos, Maryjean Schenk, Charles F. Lynch, Leslie Bernstein, Lindsay M. Morton, James R. Cerhan, Richard K. Severson, …
Environmental health perspectives, v 119(2), pp 232-238
01 Feb 2011
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1289/ehp.1002106
PMID: 21370516
Featured in Collection :   UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel
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Published, Version of Record (VoR)access removed by US government, 1 Dec 2025 Restricted

Abstract

Environmental Sciences Environmental Sciences & Ecology Life Sciences & Biomedicine Public, Environmental & Occupational Health Science & Technology Toxicology
BACKGROUND: Previous epidemiologic findings suggest an association between exposure to trichloro-ethylene (TCE), a chlorinated solvent primarily used for vapor degreasing of metal parts, and non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). OBJECTIVES: We investigated the association between occupational TCE exposure and NHL within a population-based case-control study using detailed exposure assessment methods. METHODS: Cases (n = 1,189; 76% participation rate) and controls (n = 982; 52% participation rate) provided information on their occupational histories and, for selected occupations, on possible workplace exposure to TCE using job-specific interview modules. An industrial hygienist assessed potential TCE exposure based on this information and a review of the TCE industrial hygiene literature. We computed odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) relating NHL and different metrics of estimated TCE exposure, categorized using tertiles among exposed controls, with unexposed subjects as the reference group. RESULTS: We observed associations with NHL for the highest tertiles of estimated average weekly exposure (23 exposed cases; OR = 2.5; 95% CI, 1.1-6.1) and cumulative exposure (24 exposed cases; OR = 2.3; 95% CI, 1.0-5.0) to TCE. Tests for trend with these metrics surpassed or approached statistical significance (p-value for trend = 0.02 and 0.08, respectively); however, we did not observe dose-response relationships across the exposure levels. Overall, neither duration nor intensity of exposure was associated with NHL, although we observed an association with the lowest tertile of exposure duration (OR = 2.1; 95% CI, 1.0-4.7). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings offer additional support for an association between high levels of exposure to TCE and increased risk of NHL. However, we cannot rule out the possibility of confounding from other chlorinated solvents used for vapor degreasing and note that our exposure assessment methods have not been validated.

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40 citations in Web of Science
48 citations in Scopus

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Collaboration types
Domestic collaboration
International collaboration
Web of Science research areas
Environmental Sciences
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Toxicology
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