Kang Sungchan, Hwang Jeong-In, Kim Su Hwan, Lim Hyungryul, Lee Dong-Wook, Lee Woojoo, Kim Jong Hun, Yu Sol, Lim Jungyun, Kim Younghee, Kim Kyoung-Nam
Department of Public Health Sciences, Graduate School of Public Health, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea.
Department of Preventive Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Epidemiol Health. 2025;47:e2025023. doi: 10.4178/epih.e2025023. Epub 2025 May 2.
This study was conducted to assess the association between the duration of humidifier disinfectant use and lung cancer development.
We analyzed data from 3,605 applicants registered for compensation from the Korean government due to health conditions related to humidifier disinfectant exposure. Among these individuals, 121 were diagnosed with lung cancer at least 4 years after their initial exposure (through December 2021). Hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for lung cancer incidence were estimated according to the duration of disinfectant use using Cox proportional hazards models.
Compared with <5 months of use, the HRs for lung cancer were 1.81 (95% CI, 0.41 to 7.97) for 5-14 months, 2.45 (95% CI, 0.58 to 10.41) for 15-29 months, and 4.61 (95% CI, 1.12 to 18.91) for ≥30 months. Using never smokers with <15 months of use as the reference category, the HRs were 2.97 (95% CI, 1.34 to 6.56) for never smokers with ≥15 months of use, 2.73 (95% CI, 0.94 to 7.95) for current or former smokers with <15 months of use, and 4.74 (95% CI, 1.94 to 11.61) for current or former smokers with ≥15 months of use.
Our study provides some of the first robust epidemiological evidence that prolonged humidifier disinfectant use contributes to lung cancer development. Future studies-particularly those including unexposed populations-are needed to confirm these findings.
本研究旨在评估使用加湿器消毒剂的时长与肺癌发生之间的关联。
我们分析了3605名因接触加湿器消毒剂而出现健康问题并向韩国政府申请赔偿的人员的数据。在这些人中，有121人在初次接触（截至2021年12月）至少4年后被诊断出患有肺癌。使用Cox比例风险模型，根据消毒剂使用时长估计肺癌发病率的风险比（HRs）和95%置信区间（CIs）。
与使用时长<5个月相比，使用时长为5 - 14个月时肺癌的HRs为1.81（95% CI，0.41至7.97），15 - 29个月时为2.45（95% CI，0.58至10.41），≥30个月时为4.61（95% CI，1.12至18.91）。以使用时长<15个月的从不吸烟者为参照类别，使用时长≥15个月的从不吸烟者的HRs为2.97（95% CI，1.34至6.56），使用时长<15个月的当前或既往吸烟者的HRs为2.73（95% CI，0.94至7.95），使用时长≥15个月的当前或既往吸烟者的HRs为4.74（95% CI，1.94至11.61）。
我们的研究提供了一些首批有力的流行病学证据，表明长期使用加湿器消毒剂会促使肺癌发生。需要开展进一步研究——尤其是纳入未接触人群的研究——以证实这些发现。
