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Occupational risk factors for testicular cancer: A registry-based case-control study in Rhineland Palatinate – Germany
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Veröffentlicht: | 20. September 2011 |
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Introduction: Testicular cancer affects mainly young men in the age group 20 to 40. The risk factors behind the occurrence of testicular cancer are not well understood, apart from the well established elevated risk associated with undescended testis. In order to investigate potential occupational risk factors, we have conducted a registry-based case-control study in Rhineland Palatinate for the years 2000–2005.
Materials and methods: The cases were testicular cancer patients whose occupational information was available and who were registered between 2000 and 2005 in the Rhineland Palatinate Cancer Registry. For each case, 1–3 age-matched male controls were selected from a pool of other cancer-type diagnoses (stomach, colon, pancreas, kidney, thyroid, oral cavity and nasopharyngeal cancers, Hodgkin’s disease and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma). Occupational information was available for 42% of the cases. The occupational information was coded according to the International Standard Classification of Occupation for the year 2008. Odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were computed through multivariate logistic regression, adjusted for age groups.
Results: The OR for testicular cancer was slightly elevated for technicians and related professionals (OR=1.62, 95% CI 1.00–2.63) as well as for clerical support workers (OR=1.71, 95% CI 1.14–2.56). For both groups the increase was most prominent in those 20–50 years old (OR technicians = 2.02, 95% CI 1.23–3.33) and (OR clerics = 2.00, 95% CI 1.30–3.09). No other occupational category showed an association with testicular cancer.
Discussion/conclusion: While in principle the feasibility of a registry-based case-control study could be demonstrated, missing occupational data and the choice of cancer controls represent challenges to the validity of the approach. Our study did not reveal any strong occupational risks. The increased OR for testicular cancer in technicians and clerics could be related to the socioeconomic status, or to sedentary life style, both factors that have been implicated as risk factors in other studies.