Mortality of workers exposed to chloroprene.

A study was undertaken to determine whether exposure to chloroprene increases the risk of lung cancer. Data were obtained from historical prospective mortality studies of two cohorts, one consisting of 270 men first exposed between 1931 and 1948, and the other of 1,576 men first exposed between 1942 and 1957. The number of lung cancer deaths in each cohort (three in the first and 16 in the second) were about the same as expected. Among maintenance mechanics in the second cohort, there were eight lung cancer cases (four living and four dead). A crude morbidity analysis suggested that this group may have had an excess incidence of lung cancer. However, the absence of excess lung cancer mortality in other high exposure occupational groups indicates that chloroprene exposure does not increase the risk of lung cancer.