Letters
Interpretation of study minimises occupational hazards
EDITOR,--Eero Pukkala and colleagues report a standardised incidence ratio of 10.7 for breast cancer and 3.57 for leukaemia among Finnish airline cabin attendants.1 Most other ratios reported are also raised beyond unity. Yet the study makes no correction for the healthy worker effect, which can halve the incidence of morbidity in a given population. The interpretation therefore minimises what seem to be significant occupational hazards. The researchers note, even so, that the observed risk ratios are much higher than would be expected on the basis of present estimates of health hazards based on studies of survivors of the atomic bombs. I have conducted a study showing that these studies are far from robust,2 and we do ourselves a disservice by continuing to depend on them 40 years on.Honorary lecturer Centre for Medical Education, Dundee University Medical School, Dundee DD1 9SY
Sue Rabbitt Roff
- Pukkala E, Auvinen A, Wahlberg G. Incidence of
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- Incidence of cancer among Finnish airline cabin attendants, 1967-92
- Eero Pukkala, Anssi Auvinen, and Gunilla Wahlberg
BMJ 1995 311: 649-652.[Abstract] [Full Text]
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