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National Cancer Institute U.S. National Institutes of Health www.cancer.gov
Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology Branch
Available Datasets

Datasets from studies by the Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology Branch are available for use and include:

Cohort Mortality Study of Civilian Workers Employed at Hill Air Force Base
Study Design:Cohort mortality study
No. of Subjects:14,457 (10,928 white men, 3,138 white women, 269 nonwhite men, 122 nonwhite women)
Time Period:1952 to 1990
Exposure Information:
  • Assessed exposure to some 50 different chemicals.
  • Industrial hygienists use work histories, monitoring conducted at the base, interviews with workers and other information to make assignments.
  • Trichloroethylene, the major solvent used, was evaluated for level and probability of exposure by job
Publications:Spirtas (1991), Stewart (1991), Blair (1998)
Survey of Inclusion of Women and Minorities in Occupational Cancer Epidemiologic Studies
Study Design:Literature review
No. of Subjects:1233 published papers
Time Period:1971-1990
Exposure Information:Occupation/industry/exposure
Publications:Zahm (1994)
Acrylonitrile Workers Study
Study Design:Cohort mortality with case cohort study of lung cancer
No. of Subjects:25,460
Time Period:1950-1990
Exposure Information:Quantitative estimates, job titles, exposure to acrylonitrile and many other chemicals, tobacco use on a case-cohort group
Publications:Blair (1998), Stewart (1992, 1995, 1996, 1998)
U.S. Veterans Mortality Study
Study Design:Cohort mortality
No. of Subjects:300,000 veterans of WWI and WWII; 200,000 deaths
Time Period:1952 to 1980
Exposure Information:Usual occupation and industry, tobacco use
Publications:Walrath (1985), Blair (1985), Hrubec (1992), Heineman (1994)
Mortality Among Workers Producing Ceramic Fixtures
Study Design:Cohort mortality
No. of Subjects:2,000 subjects; 570 deaths
Time Period:1930 to 1979
Exposure Information:Company work histories
Publications:Thomas (1987)
Kansas Study of Lymphoma and Soft-tissue Sarcoma
Study Design:Population-based case-control with a telephone interview
No. of Subjects:
  • 200 non-Hodgkin's lymphomas
  • 170 Hodgkin's disease
  • 150 soft-tissue sarcomas
  • 950 controls
Time Period:1982 to 1984
Exposure Information:Work histories, agricultural products, pesticides used, medical history, tobacco and alcohol use, residential history, corroborative survey of pesticide use
Publications:Hoar (1985, 1986), Zahm (1988, 1989)
Dry Cleaners Study
Study Design:Cohort mortality study based on records of a dry cleaners union in St. Louis
No. of Subjects:5,000 (400 white men, 900 black men, 2,565 white women, and 1,481 black women); 1,222 deaths
Time Period:1940 to 1978
Exposure Information:Job title, years of union membership
Publications:Blair (1989)
Leukemia and Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma Study in Iowa and Minnesota
Study Design:Population-based case-control study with an in-person interview, white men over the age of thirty
No. of Subjects:578 leukemias; 590 non-Hodgkin's lymphomas; 1245 population-based controls
Time Period:1981 to 1984
Exposure Information:Complete work histories, detailed information on pesticide use, medical history, alcohol and tobacco use, family history of cancer, industrial hygiene assessments of 25 chemicals
Publications:Cantor (1988), Brown (1990, 1992), Linos (1990), Pottern (1991), Cantor (1992), Blair (1993), and others
Case-Control Study of Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma, Hodgkin's Disease, Multiple Myeloma, and Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia Among Men and Women in Nebraska
Study Design:Population-based case-control study in 66 counties of eastern Nebraska
No. of Subjects:Cases (426 non-Hodgkin's lymphomas, 73 Hodgkin's disease, 82 multiple myeloma, 69 chronic lymphocytic leukemia); Controls (472 by random-digit dialing, 603 from Health Care Financing Administration files, 580 from death certificates)
Time Period:1983 to 1986
Exposure Information:Obtained by interview including occupational history, diet, smoking and alcohol use, agricultural pesticide use, hair dyes, water consumption and source, medical history, family history of cancer, medications
Publications:Zahm (1990, 1992, 1993, 1994), Ward (1994), Blair (1993)

Combined NHL Study

This is a combination of the following datasets:

  • Case-Control Study of Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma, Hodgkin's Disease, Multiple Myeloma, and Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia Among Men and Women in Nebraska
  • Leukemia and Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma Study in Iowa and Minnesota
  • Kansas Study of Lymphoma and Soft-tissue Sarcoma

Datasets can also be requested from the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). To request this data from NARA, send a request to:

Reference Services
Electronic and Special Media Records Services Division (NWME)
The National Archives at College Park
8601 Adelphi Road, Room 5320
College Park, MD 20740-6001
Telephone: (301) 837-0470
Fax: (301) 837-3681
Email: cer@nara.gov

Ordering information can be found at: http://www.archives.gov/research/order/.