Respiratory Cancer and Non-Malignant Respiratory Disease-Related Mortality among Older Construction Workers-Findings from the Health and Retirement Study

OBJECTIVE: This study explored the risk of respiratory cancer and non-malignant respiratory disease (NMRD)-related mortality among older construction workers. METHODS: Analyzed data from the 1992–2010 RAND Health and Retirement Study (HRS) and the HRS National Death Index – Cause of Death file. About 25,183 workers aged 50 years and older were examined, including 5,447 decedents and 19,736 survivors, of which 1,460 reported their longest job was in construction. Multinomial logistic regression assessed the differences in mortality between workers’ longest occupations, controlling for confounders. RESULTS: After adjusting for smoking and demographics, construction workers were almost twice as likely to die from respiratory cancer (OR = 1.65; CI: 1.10–2.47) or NMRD (OR = 1.73; CI: 1.16–2.58) compared to white-collar workers. CONCLUSIONS: This study adds to the growing evidence that respiratory cancer and NMRD are frequently associated with construction exposure.