Environment International (Aug 2023)
Exposure to long-term source-specific transportation noise and incident breast cancer: A pooled study of eight Nordic cohorts
- Jesse D. Thacher,
- Anna Oudin,
- Erin Flanagan,
- Kristoffer Mattisson,
- Maria Albin,
- Nina Roswall,
- Andrei Pyko,
- Gunn Marit Aasvang,
- Zorana J. Andersen,
- Signe Borgquist,
- Jørgen Brandt,
- Karin Broberg,
- Thomas Cole-Hunter,
- Charlotta Eriksson,
- Kristina Eneroth,
- Hrafnhildur Gudjonsdottir,
- Emilie Helte,
- Matthias Ketzel,
- Timo Lanki,
- Youn-Hee Lim,
- Karin Leander,
- Petter Ljungman,
- Jonas Manjer,
- Satu Männistö,
- Ole Raaschou-Nielsen,
- Göran Pershagen,
- Debora Rizzuto,
- Malte Sandsveden,
- Jenny Selander,
- Mette K. Simonsen,
- Lara Stucki,
- Mårten Spanne,
- Leo Stockfelt,
- Anne Tjønneland,
- Tarja Yli-Tuomi,
- Pekka Tiittanen,
- Victor H. Valencia,
- Mikael Ögren,
- Agneta Åkesson,
- Mette Sørensen
Affiliations
- Jesse D. Thacher
- Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Lund University, Lund, Sweden; Corresponding author.
- Anna Oudin
- Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Lund University, Lund, Sweden; Section for Sustainable Health, Umeå University, Sweden
- Erin Flanagan
- Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
- Kristoffer Mattisson
- Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
- Maria Albin
- Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Lund University, Lund, Sweden; Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Nina Roswall
- Danish Cancer Society Research Centre, Strandboulevarden 49, 2100 Copenhagen Ø, Denmark
- Andrei Pyko
- Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Center for Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Region Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden
- Gunn Marit Aasvang
- Department of Air Quality and Noise, Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway
- Zorana J. Andersen
- Department of Public Health, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Signe Borgquist
- Department of Oncology, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
- Jørgen Brandt
- Department of Environmental Science, Aarhus University, Roskilde, Denmark
- Karin Broberg
- Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
- Thomas Cole-Hunter
- Department of Public Health, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Charlotta Eriksson
- Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Center for Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Region Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden
- Kristina Eneroth
- Environment and Health Administration, Stockholm, Sweden
- Hrafnhildur Gudjonsdottir
- Centre for Epidemiology and Community Medicine, Region Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Global Public Health, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Emilie Helte
- Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Matthias Ketzel
- Department of Environmental Science, Aarhus University, Roskilde, Denmark; Global Centre for Clean Air Research (GCARE), University of Surrey, Guildford, United Kingdom
- Timo Lanki
- Department of Health Security, Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, Kuopio, Finland; School of Medicine, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, Finland; Department of Environmental and Biological Sciences, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, Finland
- Youn-Hee Lim
- Department of Public Health, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Karin Leander
- Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Petter Ljungman
- Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Cardiology, Danderyd Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
- Jonas Manjer
- Department of Surgery, Skåne University Hospital Malmö, Lund University, Malmö, Sweden
- Satu Männistö
- Department of Public Health and Welfare, Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, Helsinki, Finland
- Ole Raaschou-Nielsen
- Danish Cancer Society Research Centre, Strandboulevarden 49, 2100 Copenhagen Ø, Denmark; Department of Environmental Science, Aarhus University, Roskilde, Denmark
- Göran Pershagen
- Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Debora Rizzuto
- Aging Research Centre, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Karolinska Institutet and Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
- Malte Sandsveden
- Department of Clinical Sciences Malmö, Lund University, Sweden
- Jenny Selander
- Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Mette K. Simonsen
- Department of Neurology and the Parker Institute, Bispebjerg and Frederiksberg Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Lara Stucki
- Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Mårten Spanne
- Environment Department, City of Malmö, Malmö, Sweden
- Leo Stockfelt
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Gothenburg, Sweden; Occupational and Environmental Medicine, School of Public Health and Community Medicine, Institute of Medicine, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
- Anne Tjønneland
- Danish Cancer Society Research Centre, Strandboulevarden 49, 2100 Copenhagen Ø, Denmark; Department of Public Health, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Tarja Yli-Tuomi
- Department of Health Security, Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, Kuopio, Finland
- Pekka Tiittanen
- Department of Health Security, Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, Kuopio, Finland
- Victor H. Valencia
- Department of Environmental Science, Aarhus University, Roskilde, Denmark; UTE University, Quito, Ecuador
- Mikael Ögren
- Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Gothenburg, Sweden; Occupational and Environmental Medicine, School of Public Health and Community Medicine, Institute of Medicine, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
- Agneta Åkesson
- Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- Mette Sørensen
- Danish Cancer Society Research Centre, Strandboulevarden 49, 2100 Copenhagen Ø, Denmark; Department of Natural Science and Environment, Roskilde University, Denmark
- Journal volume & issue
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Vol. 178
p. 108108
Abstract
Background: Environmental noise is an important environmental exposure that can affect health. An association between transportation noise and breast cancer incidence has been suggested, although current evidence is limited. We investigated the pooled association between long-term exposure to transportation noise and breast cancer incidence. Methods: Pooled data from eight Nordic cohorts provided a study population of 111,492 women. Road, railway, and aircraft noise were modelled at residential addresses. Breast cancer incidence (all, estrogen receptor (ER) positive, and ER negative) was derived from cancer registries. Hazard ratios (HR) were estimated using Cox Proportional Hazards Models, adjusting main models for sociodemographic and lifestyle variables together with long-term exposure to air pollution. Results: A total of 93,859 women were included in the analyses, of whom 5,875 developed breast cancer. The median (5th–95th percentile) 5-year residential road traffic noise was 54.8 (40.0–67.8) dB Lden, and among those exposed, the median railway noise was 51.0 (41.2–65.8) dB Lden. We observed a pooled HR for breast cancer (95 % confidence interval (CI)) of 1.03 (0.99–1.06) per 10 dB increase in 5-year mean exposure to road traffic noise, and 1.03 (95 % CI: 0.96–1.11) for railway noise, after adjustment for lifestyle and sociodemographic covariates. HRs remained unchanged in analyses with further adjustment for PM2.5 and attenuated when adjusted for NO2 (HRs from 1.02 to 1.01), in analyses using the same sample. For aircraft noise, no association was observed. The associations did not vary by ER status for any noise source. In analyses using <60 dB as a cutoff, we found HRs of 1.08 (0.99–1.18) for road traffic and 1.19 (0.95–1.49) for railway noise. Conclusions: We found weak associations between road and railway noise and breast cancer risk. More high-quality prospective studies are needed, particularly among those exposed to railway and aircraft noise before conclusions regarding noise as a risk factor for breast cancer can be made.
