Cancer, due to occupational exposure

The human and economic costs of these conditions are indisputably enormous. Leigh et al. (1997) estimated that more than 60,000 workers die each year from occupational illnesses, and more than 850,000 develop new illnesses annually. Similarly, Steenland et al. (2003) estimated that between 10,000 and 20,000 workers die each year from cancer due to occupational exposures, and between 5,000 and 24,000 die from work-related Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. 

Ultraviolet radiation does not penetrate beyond the skin and is substantially absorbed in the cornea and lens of the eye. The human organs at risk are therefore the skin and the eyes. The immediate effects are erythema (as in sunburn) and photokeratitis (arc eye, snow blindness). Long-term effects are premature skin ageing and skin cancer, and possibly cataracts. No cases of skin cancer due to occupational exposure to artificial sources of ultraviolet radiation have been identified, but a causal link between skin cancer and exposure to solar ultraviolet radiation is now accepted, particularly for those with white skin. Some chemicals such as coal tar can... 

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