Progress In Epidemiology

Our plain-English summary of Progress In Epidemiology, by J.C. Gilson (1973).

The study

• Author: J.C. Gilson
• Published: Biological Effects Of Asbestos (J.C. Wagner, Editor), Lyon: Iarc Scientific Publications, Volume 8, Pp. 5-10 (1973)
• Type of article: Conference paper
• Our copy: from Johns-Manville's own medical library, J-M no. 002389. The article is still under copyright, so we describe it here rather than post it.

In plain English

This article was a short review, not a new study. The author compared progress in asbestos epidemiology since 1964 with the recommendations a UICC Working Group made that year, mostly by pointing to other papers at the same conference. The author reported that the combined effect of cigarette smoking and asbestos exposure on related cancers was now much clearer. A single international scheme for classifying chest X-rays, the ILO U/C 1971 scheme, had been adopted. Studies of mining populations exposed to only one fibre type had been made in Canada, Finland and Cyprus, and some factory groups with a single fibre type had been found. Evidence of a dose-response relationship for asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma was described as appearing. For mesothelioma, the author wrote that smoking was not an important factor but fibre type was. Some mesotheliomas were apparently unrelated to asbestos, in proportions that varied widely between surveys. Little progress was reported on the effect of removal from exposure or on studies of families. The author concluded that most of the recommendations had been carried out.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: narrative review comparing progress in asbestos epidemiology since 1964 with the 1964 UICC Working Group recommendations
• Who was studied: No original study population. The author reviewed surveys published since 1964 and papers presented at the conference, including studies of single-fibre mining populations in Canada, Finland and Cyprus and of South African mining areas.
• Exposure: Occupational asbestos exposure in general, with attention to fibre type (including amosite and crocidolite in South African mining areas), dust dose and smoking
• Main results:
  • The author reported that the inter-relation of cigarette smoking and asbestos exposure on related cancers was now much clearer.
  • A single international scheme for classifying chest radiographs of pneumoconiosis, the ILO U/C 1971 scheme, had been adopted.
  • Some factory populations exposed to only one fibre type had been identified, so comparisons of apparently pure exposed groups were no longer limited to mining.
  • Evidence for a dose-response relationship for asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma was described as appearing from recent surveys.
  • For mesothelioma, the author stated that cigarette smoking was not an important factor and that fibre type was important.
  • Some mesotheliomas were apparently unrelated to past asbestos exposure, and the proportion varied widely between surveys.
  • Little progress had been made on the effect of removal from further dust exposure, and the annual progression rate of asbestosis had not been established.
  • Little progress had been reported on studies of families or households, apart from isolated case reports.
• The authors' conclusion: The author concluded that most of the 1964 recommendations had been carried out in a wide range of studies.

Topics

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Epidemiology, UICC, Asbestos Exposure, Chest X-Ray, Dose-response relationship, Lung Cancer, Mesothelioma.

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