Cancer risk factors in Europe: discover the first findings of EU-OSHA’s Workers’ Exposure Survey

To help in the fight against occupational cancer, EU-OSHA conducted a Workers’ Exposure Survey on cancer risk factors (WES) in Europe. The goal is to better identify the risk factors at workplaces that can lead to the disease, providing current and comprehensive data that can be used for prevention, awareness-raising and policy-making.

Thousands of workers in six EU Member States (Germany, Ireland, Spain, France, Hungary and Finland) were interviewed to estimate their probable exposure to 24 known cancer risk factors, which include industrial chemicals, process-generated substances and mixtures, along with physical risk factors.

The survey reveals that UV radiation and diesel emissions are the most frequent cancer risk exposures in Europe’s workplaces. The first findings also offer a glimpse into the valuable data that can be obtained from WES.  

Read the news release

Explore the first findings and the methodology summary

Find out more in our new web section dedicated to the WES