1740P - Geolocation of respiratory tract cancer and its relationship with chronic exposure to PM2.5 pollutants

Background

About 55% of the population worldwide lives in urban areas, and agreeing to WHO (World Health Organization), 91% of people in cities do not breathe safe air. There is evidence of a positive correlation between PM2.5 and lung cancer mortality. The Metropolitan Area of Monterrey, México, is the country's third most significant and most polluted, with an annual average of 23 μg/m³ PM2.5, equivalent to 2.3 times the value established by the WHO. Objective. This study aimed to identify if spatial exposure patterns to PM2.5 correlate to respiratory tract cancer incidence.

Methods

Daily concentrations of PM2.5 were estimated considering the PM10/PM2.5 ratio in local stations that measured both fractions. Subsequently, the available fraction per station was calculated, considering the fractions of all available station data. Finally, the general fraction of the entire study period was calculated. The morbidity data for this study came from an individual-level database that contained the geographical coordinates of the residences of the airway cancer cases (bronchi, lung, larynx, and paranasal sinuses).

Results

The average concentration of PM2.5 was 32.4 μg/m³, 3.24 times the limit established by the WHO. We identified that the increase in PM levels was associated with the number of cancer cases. The mean age of the cases was 70 years. There were 76.77% (n = 476) patients with a lung cancer diagnosis, followed by laryngeal cancer at 21.77% (n = 135). Interestingly, we detect that 44.35% (n = 275) has never smoked. On the other hand, there were 44.67% (n=277) heavy smokers in the cancer cases.

Conclusions

Implementing preventive measures to reduce emissions and exposure to PM2.5 and other air pollutants in polluted cities is necessary. High concentrations of PM2.5 are related to cancer cases, and it is essential to implement preventive cancer detection measures in polluted areas, not only in smokers’ cases. In addition, spatial analyses are valuable to describe, quantify and explain the geographical variations of diseases associated with particulate matter exposure.

Clinical trial identification

Editorial acknowledgement

Legal entity responsible for the study

Centro Universitario Contra el Cancer.

Funding

Has not received any funding.

Disclosure

All authors have declared no conflicts of interest.