IARC: Outdoor air pollution a leading environmental cause of cancer deaths

October 22nd, 2013

PRESS RELEASE N° 221

Lyon/Geneva, 17 October 2013

The specialized cancer agency of the World Health Organization, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), announced today that it has classified outdoor air pollution as carcinogenic to humans (Group 1).1

After thoroughly reviewing the latest available scientific literature, the world’s leading experts convened by the IARC Monographs Programme concluded that there is sufficient evidence that exposure to outdoor air pollution causes lung cancer (Group 1). They also noted a positive association with an increased risk of bladder cancer.

Particulate matter, a major component of outdoor air pollution, was evaluated separately and was also classified as carcinogenic to humans (Group 1). The IARC evaluation showed an increasing risk of lung cancer with increasing levels of exposure to particulate matter and air pollution. Although the composition of air pollution and levels of exposure can vary dramatically between locations, the conclusions of the Working Group apply to all regions of the world.

Full details here: http://www.iarc.fr/en/media-centre/iarcnews/pdf/pr221_E.pdf

1 Please note that the summary evaluation will be published by The Lancet Oncology online on Thursday 24 October 2013