American researchers link indoor wood burning to the incidence of lung cancer in women.
- After a follow-up of approximately 11 years, 347 cases of lung cancer were recorded in women who were healthy at the start of the study.
- Participants using their fireplace or wood stove more than 30 days per year had a 68% higher risk of lung cancer.
- The smoke from these wood heaters would contain substances, such as benzene or polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, “known or suspected of causing lung cancer”.
Several epidemiological studies have revealed an association between heating with wood and lung cancer. Issue : “most studies have been retrospective and few have been conducted in the United States, where patterns of indoor wood heating use differ.” This is why American scientists decided to carry out new work to examine exposure to indoor wood smoke from fireplaces and stoves and the appearance of this malignant tumor, which is becoming more and more common among the women.
More frequent use of wood heating led to higher risk of lung cancer
For the purposes of the study, published in the journal Environment International, they recruited 50,226 women who had no history of lung cancer, but whose sisters had breast cancer. Participants had to declare the presence and frequency of use of a fireplace or wood stove in their home. They were also asked to indicate the main source of heat in their home, the main source of energy in their kitchen and other fuel sources used in fireplaces and stoves. Next, the team reviewed their medical records.
According to the results, during the follow-up of approximately 11 years, 347 medically confirmed cases of lung cancer were recorded. Overall, 62.3% of adults surveyed reported the presence of an indoor fireplace or wood stove in their residence. The authors found that using a wood-burning stove or fireplace indoors increased the risk of developing lung cancer in women by 43% compared to those who did not use them. Another observation: volunteers who used their wood stove more than 30 days a year had a 68% higher risk of lung cancer.
Wood heating: “smoke may contain substances suspected of causing lung cancer”
“Smoke from the use of wood-burning appliances indoors may contain substances, such as benzene, 1,3-butadiene, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and other hazardous air pollutants, known or suspected of causing lung cancer. declared, at Guardian, Dr Suril Mehta, of the US National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and lead author of the work. According to Fay Johnston of the Menzies Institute for Medical Research (Tasmania), who was not involved in the US study, even relatively low use was associated with an increased risk of lung cancer. Thus, she considered that “Interventions to reduce exposure in homes and neighborhoods should be a priority.”
