Carleton University’s Paul Villeneuve has been awarded more than $239,000 from the Ontario government to pursue research on potential connections between occupational air hazards and kidney cancer. This study will be led at Carleton University but will also involve researchers at Cancer Care Ontario in Toronto and the Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique in Montreal.
Villeneuve, in the Department of Health Sciences, will use the funds to determine whether workplace exposure to silica, diesel and gasoline engine exhausts increase the risk of developing kidney cancer in Canadian men. Previous studies have investigated associations between these occupation exposures and respiratory cancer, but there have been few high-quality studies that have examined kidney cancer as an outcome. Kidney cancer is the sixth leading type of cancer among Canadian men.
The announcement was made as part of a $2.7-million provincial commitment to support research projects that will help reduce workplace injuries, illnesses and fatalities through the Research Opportunities Program.
The project, one of the largest occupational case-control studies of kidney cancer, fits into the Occupational Disease funding category. It will examine data from 727 diagnosed cases of kidney cancer from Canadian men in eight provinces.
“Reducing workplace injuries, illnesses and fatalities is our top priority, and we’ve made great strides by reducing workplace injuries by 40 per cent since 2003, but there’s always more that can be done,” said Kevin Flynn, Minister of Labour.
Media Inquiries:
Chris Cline
Media Relations Officer
Carleton University
613-520-2600, ext. 1391
christopher_cline@carleton.ca
Follow us on Twitter: Twitter.com/CUnewsroom
Need an expert? Go to: Carleton.ca/newsroom/experts