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Health risks at population level may be investigated with different types of environmental studies depending on access to data and funds. Options include ecological studies, case-control studies with individual interviews and human sample analysis, risk assessment or cohort studies. Most public health projects use data and methodologies already available due to the cost of ad-hoc data collection. The aim of the article is to perform a literature review of environmental exposure and health outcomes with main focus on methodologies for assessing an association between water and/or soil pollutants and cancer. A systematic literature search was performed in May 2019 using PubMed. Articles were assessed by four independent reviewers. Forty articles were identified and divided into four groups, according to the data and methods they used, i.e.: (1) regression models with data by geographical area; (2) regression models with data at individual level; (3) exposure intensity threshold values for evaluating health outcome trends; (4) analyses of distance between source of pollutant and health outcome clusters. The issue of exposure assessment has been investigated for over 40 years and the most important innovations regard technologies developed to measure pollutants, statistical methodologies to assess exposure, and software development. Thanks to these changes, it has been possible to develop and apply geo-coding and statistical methods to reduce the ecological bias when considering the relationship between humans, geographic areas, pollutants, and health outcomes. The results of the present review may contribute to optimize the use of public health resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of Giornale Italiano di Medicina del Lavoro ed Ergonomia is the property of Giornale Italiano di Medicina del Lavoro ed Ergonomia Editorial Board and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background Occupational Cancer Monitoring (OCCAM) is an Italian organization that monitors occupational cancers, by area and industrial sector, by retrieving cases and employment history from official databases. OCCAM previously estimated a relative risk (RR) of lung cancer of about 1.32 among 'metal treatment' workers in Lombardy, northern Italy, potentially exposed to chrome and nickel. In the present study, lung cancer risk was estimated among electroplating workers only. Methods Lombardy electroplating companies were identified from descriptions in Social Security files. Lung cancer risk was evaluated from 2001 to 2008 incident cases identified from hospital discharge records. Results The RR for lung cancer among electroplating workers was 2.03 (90% CI 1.33-3.10, 18 cases) for men; 3.00 (90% CI 1.38-9.03, 4 cases) for women. Conclusions Electroplaters had higher risks than 'metal treatment' workers. Although the risks were due to past exposure, case histories and recent acute effects indicate a present carcinogenic hazard in some Lombardy electroplating factories. Am. J. Ind. Med. 55:1-4, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]