Lucy Carpenter's 1995-96 Annual Research Report

Lucy Carpenter (Faculty Fellow) was granted a two year leave of absence from College and her University Lecturership in Statistical Epidemiology, to work at the Medical Research Council Programme on AIDS in Uganda. During the six-month period prior to her departure in March, she completed work on a number of projects, including the development of methods for identifying occupational groups at increased risk of cancer, using data on cancer registrations for England, 1981-87 (collaborative with David Cox (Honorary Fellow) and Eve Roman (Associate Member)). Using these methods, which involve a novel graphical approach, we were able to demonstrate the persistence in recent cancer data of certain previously well-established increased risks - most notably nasal cancer in woodworking machinists and scrotal cancer in machine tool operators - and to suggest some previously unidentified occupational associations, including increased risks of prostatic cancer in dental technicians and laryngeal cancer in petrol pump attendants. Other studies completed during this time included an examination of cancer mortality in nuclear industry workers in relation to monitoring for radionuclide exposure, and a study of death rates in 20,000 NHS consultants according to their hospital speciality. Increased risks of accidental poisoning in male, and of suicide in female consultants found in the latter study suggests the need for better preventative measures. An excess of mortality from cirrhosis found in anaesthetists might reflect an occupational hazard and may warrant further investigation.

Publications

(with N T Fear, E Roman, R Newton, D Bull) ‘Cancer in Electrical Workers: an Analysis of Cancer Registration in England, 1981-87’, British Journal of Cancer, 73, 1996.

(with Z T Zondervan, R Painter, M P Vessey) ‘Oral Contraceptives and Cervical Cancer - Further Findings from the Oxford Family Planning Association Contraceptive Study’, British Journal of Cancer, 73, 1996.

(with M Bartley, K Dunnell and R Fitzpatrick) ‘Measuring Inequalities in Health: an Analysis of Mortality Patterns from two Social Classifications’ Sociology of Health and Illness, 18, 1996.

(with S Shivananda, R Logan, J Lennard Jone, M Von Blankenstein, N Fear) ‘Incidence of Inflammatory Bowel Disease across Europe: Is There a Difference Between North and South?’ Gut, 39, 1996.

(with R Newton, N Fear, E Roman) ‘Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and Solar Ultraviolet Radiation’ British Medical Journal, 313, 1996.