The Lancet Regional Health – As wildfire risks have elevated due to climate change, the health risks that toxicants from fire smoke pose to wildland firefighters have been exacerbated. Recently, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has reclassified wildland firefighters’ occupational exposure as carcinogenic to humans (Group 1). Wildfire smoke contributes to an increased risk of cancer and cardiovascular disease, yet wildland firefighters have inadequate respiratory protection. This review focuses on four aspects of wildland firefighters’ health risks at the wildland-urban interface: economic costs and human impact, respiratory protection, multipollutant mixtures, and proactive management of wildfires.

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The Lancet Oncology – A Working Group of 20 scientists from 10 countries met at the invitation of the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) to finalise their evaluation of the carcinogenicity of four agents: anthracene, 2-bromopropane, butyl methacrylate (BMA), and dimethyl hydrogen phosphite (DMHP). 2-Bromopropane was classified as “probably carcinogenic to humans” (Group 2A) based on “sufficient” evidence for cancer in experimental animals and “strong” mechanistic evidence in experimental systems. The other three agents were classified as “possibly carcinogenic to humans” (Group 2B) based on “sufficient” evidence for cancer in experimental animals. For all four agents, the evidence regarding cancer in humans was “inadequate”, as no studies were available. These assessments will be published in Volume 133 of the IARC Monographs.

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En notre qualité d’organisation nationale, nous effectuons nos travaux en territoire autochtone. Aussi reconnaissons-nous que notre organisme d’accueil, le campus Point Grey de l’Université de la Colombie-Britannique, est situé sur des territoires traditionnels, ancestraux et non cédés des xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam).

Canadian Occupational Safety – The United Steelworkers (USW) Local 6500 has partnered with the Centre for Research in Occupational Safety and Health at Laurentian University and Occupational Health Clinics for Ontario Workers to work to change Ontario’s legislation for diesel particulate exposure in the mining industry. The USW Diesel Particulate Project is advocating for the Ontario Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training, and Skills Development to change the mining OEL for diesel engine exhaust to 20 µg/m³, which is the level recommended by both CAREX Canada and the Occupational Cancer Research Centre.

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En notre qualité d’organisation nationale, nous effectuons nos travaux en territoire autochtone. Aussi reconnaissons-nous que notre organisme d’accueil, le campus Point Grey de l’Université de la Colombie-Britannique, est situé sur des territoires traditionnels, ancestraux et non cédés des xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam).

Public Health Agency of Canada – Public health officials provide an important public service responding to community concerns around cancer and often receive requests to investigate patterns of cancer incidence and communicate findings with citizens. In this study, procedures were identified for Canadian public health officials (PHOs) to follow when investigating reports of cancer clusters, and the challenges officials have faced when conducting risk communication with communities were explored. Differences in practices used to investigate suspected cancer clusters by PHOs were revealed. Establishing pan-Canadian guidelines could improve procedural consistency across jurisdictions and offer enhanced opportunities to compare cluster responses for evaluation. A reporting system to track reported clusters may improve information sharing across all levels of governments.

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En notre qualité d’organisation nationale, nous effectuons nos travaux en territoire autochtone. Aussi reconnaissons-nous que notre organisme d’accueil, le campus Point Grey de l’Université de la Colombie-Britannique, est situé sur des territoires traditionnels, ancestraux et non cédés des xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam).

University of Calgary – A new multidisciplinary study shows that people who act quickly to test for and mitigate radon gas in their homes are at a much lower risk of developing lung cancer long-term. The study found that people who act quickly to learn about, test for, and reduce exposure to radioactive radon gas in their homes could reduce their lifetime risk of lung cancer by as much as 40%, compared to those who do not. The researchers determined that, for a variety of reasons including economic barriers (i.e affordability) and delaying behaviours, three in five Canadians continue to live in homes with known high radon, despite being aware of the associated health risks.

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En notre qualité d’organisation nationale, nous effectuons nos travaux en territoire autochtone. Aussi reconnaissons-nous que notre organisme d’accueil, le campus Point Grey de l’Université de la Colombie-Britannique, est situé sur des territoires traditionnels, ancestraux et non cédés des xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam).