A new study published in the Occupational and Environmental Medicine journal reveals that hairdressers, beauticians, accountants, and people working in sales, retail, clothing, and construction industries may stand a higher risk of developing ovarian cancer. The researchers however stressed that “inferences from the results are limited” and demanded further research to study the links between ovarian cancer risk and different occupations.
The research was led by a team of academics at the University of Montreal in Canada. They reviewed data on 491 Canadian women with ovarian cancer and juxtaposed it with 897 women without the disease. They linked occupations to ovarian cancer risk and compared this data to the Canadian job-exposure matrix to examine any possible workplace exposures – for instance, if they are more likely to come in contact with a certain chemical during work.
After accounting for possibly influential factors, the researchers discovered that some jobs may be connected to a heightened risk of disease. Those that had worked as a hairdresser, barber or beautician seemed to have a three-fold higher risk. Meanwhile, women that worked in accountancy for 10 years were twice as likely to develop the disease while construction workers were approximately three times as likely. Shop assistants and salespeople had a 45% increased risk while those who make or alter clothes appeared to have an 85% increased risk.
The researchers said that people found to have a higher risk were also more likely to get exposed to a number of agents like cosmetic talc, ammonia, hydrogen peroxide, hair dust, synthetic fibres, polyester fibres, organic dyes, pigments and bleaches.
The researchers wrote: “We observed associations suggesting that accountancy, hairdressing, sales, sewing and related occupations may be linked to excess risks. Further population-based research is needed to evaluate possible hazards for female workers and occupations commonly held by women.”
While reacting to the study, Kevin McConway, Emeritus Professor of Applied Statistics at the Open University said: “The researchers clearly state that their study was ‘exploratory’ and that it is ‘aimed at generating new hypotheses’. So it is certainly not claiming that they have definitely found occupational groups or exposures to chemicals and other agents that are associated with ovarian cancer.”
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