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Review
. 2021 Jul 13;2(3):100143.
doi: 10.1016/j.xinn.2021.100143. eCollection 2021 Aug 28.

Cohort studies of long-term exposure to outdoor particulate matter and risks of cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Pei Yu  1 , Suying Guo  2 , Rongbin Xu  1 , Tingting Ye  1 , Shanshan Li  1 , Malcolm R Sim  1 , Michael J Abramson  1 , Yuming Guo  1
Affiliations
Review

Cohort studies of long-term exposure to outdoor particulate matter and risks of cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Pei Yu et al. Innovation (Camb). .

Abstract

Robust evidence is needed for the hazardous effects of outdoor particulate matter (PM) on mortality and morbidity from all types of cancers. To summarize and meta-analyze the association between PM and cancer, published articles reporting associations between outdoor PM exposure and any type of cancer with individual outcome assessment that provided a risk estimate in cohort studies were identified via systematic searches. Of 3,256 records, 47 studies covering 13 cancer sites (30 for lung cancer, 12 for breast cancer, 11 for other cancers) were included in the quantitative evaluation. The pooled relative risks (RRs) for lung cancer incidence or mortality associated with every 10-μg/m3 PM2.5 or PM10 were 1.16 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.10-1.23; I2 = 81%) or 1.22 (95% CI, 1.02-1.45; I2 = 96%), respectively. Increased but non-significant risks were found for breast cancer. Other cancers were shown to be associated with PM exposure in some studies but not consistently and thus warrant further investigation.

Keywords: air pollution; cancer; meta-analysis; particulate matter; systematic review.

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Conflict of interest statement

M.J.A. holds investigator-initiated grants from Pfizer and Boehringer-Ingelheim for unrelated research. He has undertaken an unrelated consultancy for and received assistance with conference attendance from Sanofi. He has also received a speaker's fee from GSK. All other authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

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Graphical abstract
Figure 1
Figure 1
Study selection
Figure 2
Figure 2
Estimates of lung cancer risk associated with a 10-μg/m3 change in exposure to PM2.5 overall and by outcome
Figure 3
Figure 3
Estimates of lung cancer risk associated with a 10-μg/m3 change in exposure to PM10 overall and by outcome
Figure 4
Figure 4
Estimates of lung cancer risks associated with a 10-μg/m3 change in exposure to PM2.5 by region, sex, method of exposure assessment, histological subtypes, and confounding adjustment
Figure 5
Figure 5
Estimates of lung cancer risks associated with a 10-μg/m3 change in exposure to PM10 by region, sex, method of exposure assessment, histological subtypes, and confounding adjustment
Figure 6
Figure 6
Estimates of breast cancer risk associated with a 10-μg/m3 change in exposure to PM2.5
Figure 7
Figure 7
Estimates of breast cancer risk associated with a 10-μg/m3 change in exposure to PM10
Figure 8
Figure 8
Estimates of other types of cancer risk associated with a 10-μg/m3 change in exposure to PM2.5 or PM10
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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