染料業暴露員工世代之建立

Bladder cancer was reported to be caused by benzidine, 4-aminobiphenyl, 2-naphthylamine, and benzidine-based dyes. As benzidine-based dyes have been produced and used in Taiwan for more than forty years, new patients with occupational urothelial cancer can be expected in the near future. A cohort of workers from twelve dyestuff factories consisted of nine benzidine-based dye related factories and three non-benzidine-based dye factories was established. A total of 13,954 workers who had been employed by 1998 was included in this cohort. There were 4,078 workers who once worked in benzidine-based dye factories for at least one year until the production of such dyestuff was prohibited in 1992. There were 2,588 workers with previous high exposure and follow-up health surveillance should be conducted. Forty-five dead cohort members were identified as having died during 1987-1996 by linking with Taiwan’s National Mortality Registry or reported with incident cancer during 1983-1996 in Taiwan’s National Cancer Registry. Among them, there were 20
cancer patients with jobs of middle or high exposure. Two cases of bladder cancer were identified to have worked mainly in the cloth-printing department of a dye factory. It is recommended that a whole cohort of the dyestuff workers should be completed and a health surveillance program be conducted as well to be performed for dyestuff workers.