CANCER INCIDENCE AMONG ONTARIO POLICE OFFICERS

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) publ ished a report in 1995 suggesting the possibility of increased inciden ce of testicular cancel; leukemia, and cancers of the brain, eye, and skin among police officers working with traffic radar. NIOSH recommend ed epidemiologic study of the issue. This report presents the results of a retrospective cohort cancer incidence study among 22,197 officers employed by 83 Ontario police departments. The standardized incidence ratio (SIR) for all tumor sites was 0.90 (95% confidence interval [CI ] = 083-0.98). There was an increased incidence of testicular cancer ( SIR = 1.3, 90% CI = 0.9-1.8) and melanoma skin cancer (SIR = 1.45, 90% CI = 1.1-1.9). These anatomical sites might absorb energy from radar u nits, but at this time the author has no information about individual exposures to radar emissions, and it is not possible to draw etiologic conclusions. Nested case-control studies are planned to assess indivi dual radar exposures. (C) 1998 Wiley-Liss, Inc.