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Meta-Analysis
. 2021 Sep;36(9):927-936.
doi: 10.1007/s10654-021-00769-x. Epub 2021 Jun 30.

Occupational exposure to asbestos and risk of kidney cancer: an updated meta-analysis

Carlotta Zunarelli  1 , Alessandro Godono  2 , Giovanni Visci  1 , Francesco S Violante  1 , Paolo Boffetta  3   4
Affiliations
Meta-Analysis

Occupational exposure to asbestos and risk of kidney cancer: an updated meta-analysis

Carlotta Zunarelli et al. Eur J Epidemiol. 2021 Sep.

Abstract

Limited information is available on carcinogenicity of asbestos on non-respiratory organs. We aimed at conducted an updated systematic review and meta-analysis of cohort studies on occupational exposure to asbestos and risk of kidney cancer. We searched through three databases, PubMed, Embase and Scopus for article published after 2000, and after eliminating duplicates and non-relevant studies, we identified 13 studies. We combined their results with those of 31 non-overlapping studies included in a previous review up to 2000. We conducted a meta-analysis based on random-effects models. The pooled relative risk of kidney cancer for asbestos exposure was 0.94 (95% confidence interval, 0.84-1.04), with no differences according to type of asbestos fiber, geographic region, period of exposure, or estimated quality of the study. Our results showed a lack of association between occupational asbestos exposure and risk of kidney cancer.

Keywords: Asbestos; Kidney cancer; Meta-analysis; Occupational exposure.

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Conflict of interest statement

FSV and PB acted as consultants in asbestos related litigations, unrelated to the current study. Other Authors declared no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Flowchart for the identification of articles for the meta-analyses
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Forest plot of meta-analysis of results on risk of kidney cancer among occupational cohorts exposed to asbestos
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Funnel plot of Egger’s test to assess publication bias among studies included in the meta-analysis
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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