Mortality Update of a Cohort of Canadian Petroleum Workers

OBJECTIVE: This study updates the mortality experience of over 25,000 workers in a large Canadian petroleum company through December 31, 2006. METHODS: Standardized mortality ratios were generated for all-cause and specific cause mortality. RESULTS: All cause and all cancer mortality were favorable compared with the general Canadian population. Cancers of previous interest were largely consistent with expectation. There is a continuing excess of mesothelioma, which is of similar magnitude as the previous update, although based on larger numbers. This excess is mostly attributable to men who died in their 50s and 60s and who worked in the refining sector. CONCLUSION: Most causes of death show mortality rates lower than the Canadian general population. Given the excess of mesothelioma observed, this study supports ongoing vigilance in asbestos exposure control programs, as refineries continue to remove asbestos from their facilities.