Welding and cancer of the larynx: a case-control study.

The purpose of the study was to examine the occupational history of laryngeal cancer patients, and especially their exposure to welding. The investigation was conducted as a case-control study where all newly diagnosed patients less than 75 yr of age with cancer of the larynx in Denmark during March 1980 to March 1982 were selected as cases. For each case, four age- and sex-matched controls were identified from the municipal person register in which the case was listed. Data were collected partly by means of questionnaires and partly by abstracting information from the medical records of cases. Workers exposed to welding fumes had a slightly increased risk of cancer of the larynx, most predominantly of cancer of the subglottic area.