Breast Cancer at the ABC Toowong Queensland

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Breast Cancer at the ABC Toowong Queensland Breast Cancer at the ABC Toowong Queensland Final Report of the Independent Review and Scientific Investigation Panel Panel members Bruce Armstrong (Chair) Sydney Cancer Centre, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital and School of Public Health, The University of Sydney Joanne Aitken Viertel Centre for Research in Cancer Control, The Cancer Council Queensland Malcolm Sim Monash Centre for Occupational and Environmental Health, Department of Epidemiology & Preventive Medicine, Monash University Norman Swan, Producer and Presenter of the ABC’s Health Report, Australian Broadcasting Corporation 2nd June 2007 Breast Cancer at the ABC Toowong Queensland - Final Report Page 1 of 75 Table of Contents Summary........................................................................................................................3 Background....................................................................................................................6 Investigations .................................................................................................................8 Findings........................................................................................................................10 Epidemiology of breast cancer at the ABC Toowong .............................................10 Observed number of breast cancers .....................................................................10 Expected number of breast cancers......................................................................10 Workplace and other exposure history of women who had breast cancer or other breast tumours or lumps...........................................................................................13 Women with breast cancer...................................................................................13 Women with other breast tumours or lumps........................................................17 Survey of the site for possible sources of carcinogenic exposure ...........................18 Measurement of exposure to electromagnetic fields and ionising radiation............20 Radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF).......................................................20 Extremely low frequency electromagnetic fields (ELF)......................................21 Ionising radiation .................................................................................................23 Review of published literature on risk factors for breast cancer .............................25 Feedback from the community following release of the Panel’s third interim report and subsequent news media coverage......................................................................30 Additional cases of breast cancer.........................................................................30 Possible causes.....................................................................................................30 Interpretation................................................................................................................35 Conclusions..................................................................................................................40 Acknowledgements......................................................................................................41 Appendices...................................................................................................................42 Appendix 1: Questionnaire ..................................................................................43 Appendix 2: Hazards assessment.........................................................................61 Appendix 3: Report on water testing ...................................................................69 Appendix 4: Report on ELF measurements.........................................................71 Appendix 5: Report on ionising radiation measurements....................................72 Breast Cancer at the ABC Toowong Queensland - Final Report Page 2 of 75 Summary After two attempted, earlier investigations, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) appointed, in July 2006, the Independent Review and Scientific Investigation Panel to investigate an apparent cluster of breast cancers in women employed at its Toowong studios in Brisbane, Australia. The Panel reviewed relevant scientific literature, investigated the epidemiology of breast cancer in the Toowong female workforce, interviewed affected women about their work and workplace and known risk factors for breast cancer, and investigated the site for possible contamination with or high levels of exposure to known or suspected environmental risk factors for breast cancer. Thirteen women who had worked at the ABC Toowong were found to have been diagnosed with breast cancer between 1st January 1994 and 30th June 2006. An additional woman was probably diagnosed with breast cancer while working there in this period, but the details were not confirmed. Ten women were diagnosed with invasive breast cancer while still employed at Toowong; the expected number, based on breast cancer rates in all Queensland women, was 1.6 (standardised incidence ratio (SIR) 6.25, 95% confidence interval (CI) 3.0-11.5, P=0.000001). This suggests that the likelihood of this event occurring by chance is about one in a million. This, however, may oversimplify the situation and, when further analyses are performed, adjustment of the P-value for implied multiple comparisons increased its estimated value to 0.04. That potentially increases the likelihood of the cluster occurring by chance to one in 25. Counterbalancing that is our finding that the longer the time of ABC employment, the greater the risk. We found a significant trend of 12% a year (95% CI 2-23%; P=0.022) towards increasing breast cancer risk with increasing duration of employment with the ABC. Half the women had breast cancer diagnosed at less than 40 years of age, which corresponded to an SIR for breast cancer at this age of 18.23 (95% CI 5.9-42.5). The affected women had, on average, begun work at Toowong earlier and worked there longer than had other female employees in the study period. They also appeared to have been more likely to work in the newsroom. Relative to Australian women in general, they had higher educational levels, were somewhat more likely to drink alcohol, to have used oral contraceptives and to perform shift work, but less likely to smoke and more likely to exercise regularly. They were similar to other Australian women with respect to age at menarche, childbearing and breast feeding. Only one was menopausal, none had taken hormone replacement therapy and none had a family history of breast cancer. Apart from ionising radiation, which is a well established cause of breast cancer, our literature review found very limited evidence that any other workplace exposures might cause breast cancer. We considered it prudent, however, to investigate the Toowong site and workplace for environmental exposures that are known or suspected to cause any cancer and might plausibly be present there. No historical or other evidence was found of unusual contamination with or exposure to known or suspected carcinogens on the site. Asbestos had been used in construction and insulation of site buildings and had been removed on a number of occasions, including as recently as 1998. Measurements of asbestos in air in the mid 1980s and in 1998 at the time of asbestos removal, however, showed asbestos concentrations of Breast Cancer at the ABC Toowong Queensland - Final Report Page 3 of 75 <0.01 fibres/ml except on one occasion (0.01 fibres/ml). Although broadband measurements of radiofrequency electromagnetic fields on site showed higher than usual levels in a few locations, these were only in close proximity to identifiable sources to which only infrequent or brief exposure would have been likely. Measurements of extremely low frequency electromagnetic fields were similarly unremarkable. Although there was an unusually high level in an equipment room, levels measured at all other locations and individually monitored for several staff members for a few hours were similar to those observed in a small survey of Australian residences and in people without specific occupational exposure in an overseas survey. Levels of possibly carcinogenic elements in the Toowong water supply met Australian standards and measured ionising radiation was at background levels, except for radon levels in the air of the TV building. These mildly elevated levels, however, were measured, unavoidably, after staff had vacated the TV building when the building was closed and the air conditioning turned off. Under these conditions falsely high readings could be produced. These measurements of environmental exposure were inevitably limited to the present; whereas the environment of the 1980s and 1990s, or even earlier, is that most likely to have contributed to breast cancers occurring between 1994 and 2006. Nothing in our inquiries, however, produced evidence to suggest, with the probable exception of environmental tobacco smoke, that there was important past exposure to carcinogens at Toowong that would not have been present in 2006. The Panel concluded that: • There was a real increase in the risk of breast cancer in women working at the ABC Toowong site that was related to length of employment and may have been contributed to by some aspect of work or the working environment at Toowong. • It was highly unlikely that this increase was caused by exposure during work on the Toowong
Recommended publications
  • Paul Ormonde's Audio Archive About Jim Cairns Melinda Barrie
    Giving voice to Melbourne’s radical past Paul Ormonde’s audio archive about Jim Cairns Melinda Barrie University of Melbourne Archives (UMA) has recently Melbourne economic historian and federal politician Jim digitised and catalogued journalist Paul Ormonde’s Cairns’.4 Greer’s respect for Cairns’ contribution to social audio archive of his interviews with ALP politician Jim and cultural life in Australia is further corroborated in her Cairns (1914–2003).1 It contains recordings with Cairns, speech at the launch of Protest!, in which she expressed and various media broadcasts that Ormonde used when her concern about not finding any trace of Cairns at the writing his biography of Cairns, A foolish passionate university, and asked about the whereabouts of his archive: man.2 It also serves as an oral account of the Australian ‘I have looked all over the place and the name brings up Labor Party’s time in office in the 1970s after 23 years in nothing … you can’t afford to forget him’.5 Fortunately, opposition.3 Paul Ormonde offered to donate his collection of taped This article describes how Ormonde’s collection was interviews with Cairns not long after Greer’s speech. acquired and the role it has played in the development During his long and notable career in journalism, of UMA’s audiovisual (AV) collection management Ormonde (b. 1931) worked in both print and broadcast procedures. It also provides an overview of the media, including the Daily Telegraph, Sun News Pictorial Miegunyah-funded AV audit project (2012–15), which and Radio Australia. A member of the Australian Labor established the foundation for the care and safeguarding Party at the time of the party split in 1955, he was directly of UMA’s AV collections.
    [Show full text]
  • Local Heritage Register
    Explanatory Notes for Development Assessment Local Heritage Register Amendments to the Queensland Heritage Act 1992, Schedule 8 and 8A of the Integrated Planning Act 1997, the Integrated Planning Regulation 1998, and the Queensland Heritage Regulation 2003 became effective on 31 March 2008. All aspects of development on a Local Heritage Place in a Local Heritage Register under the Queensland Heritage Act 1992, are code assessable (unless City Plan 2000 requires impact assessment). Those code assessable applications are assessed against the Code in Schedule 2 of the Queensland Heritage Regulation 2003 and the Heritage Place Code in City Plan 2000. City Plan 2000 makes some aspects of development impact assessable on the site of a Heritage Place and a Heritage Precinct. Heritage Places and Heritage Precincts are identified in the Heritage Register of the Heritage Register Planning Scheme Policy in City Plan 2000. Those impact assessable applications are assessed under the relevant provisions of the City Plan 2000. All aspects of development on land adjoining a Heritage Place or Heritage Precinct are assessable solely under City Plan 2000. ********** For building work on a Local Heritage Place assessable against the Building Act 1975, the Local Government is a concurrence agency. ********** Amendments to the Local Heritage Register are located at the back of the Register. G:\C_P\Heritage\Legal Issues\Amendments to Heritage legislation\20080512 Draft Explanatory Document.doc LOCAL HERITAGE REGISTER (for Section 113 of the Queensland Heritage
    [Show full text]
  • Inner Brisbane Heritage Walk/Drive Booklet
    Engineering Heritage Inner Brisbane A Walk / Drive Tour Engineers Australia Queensland Division National Library of Australia Cataloguing- in-Publication entry Title: Engineering heritage inner Brisbane: a walk / drive tour / Engineering Heritage Queensland. Edition: Revised second edition. ISBN: 9780646561684 (paperback) Notes: Includes bibliographical references. Subjects: Brisbane (Qld.)--Guidebooks. Brisbane (Qld.)--Buildings, structures, etc.--Guidebooks. Brisbane (Qld.)--History. Other Creators/Contributors: Engineers Australia. Queensland Division. Dewey Number: 919.43104 Revised and reprinted 2015 Chelmer Office Services 5/10 Central Avenue Graceville Q 4075 Disclaimer: The information in this publication has been created with all due care, however no warranty is given that this publication is free from error or omission or that the information is the most up-to-date available. In addition, the publication contains references and links to other publications and web sites over which Engineers Australia has no responsibility or control. You should rely on your own enquiries as to the correctness of the contents of the publication or of any of the references and links. Accordingly Engineers Australia and its servants and agents expressly disclaim liability for any act done or omission made on the information contained in the publication and any consequences of any such act or omission. Acknowledgements Engineers Australia, Queensland Division acknowledged the input to the first edition of this publication in 2001 by historical archaeologist Kay Brown for research and text development, historian Heather Harper of the Brisbane City Council Heritage Unit for patience and assistance particularly with the map, the Brisbane City Council for its generous local history grant and for access to and use of its BIMAP facility, the Queensland Maritime Museum Association, the Queensland Museum and the John Oxley Library for permission to reproduce the photographs, and to the late Robin Black and Robyn Black for loan of the pen and ink drawing of the coal wharf.
    [Show full text]
  • Community Engagement Plan
    Community Engagement Plan Compliance Matrix Table 1 Compliance matrix CRRDA REQUIREMENT ADDRESSED IN SECTION REFERENCE Coordinator‐General’s change report – whole of project refinements 2019 Condition 9. Community Engagement Plan (a) The Proponent must develop a community engagement plan as part of the This Plan Construction Environmental Management Plan consistent with the Outline EMP’s Community and Stakeholder Engagement Plan. (b) The community engagement plan must be given to the Community Relations Monitor This Plan for advice at least 10 business days prior to the Construction Environmental Management Plan being provided to the Environmental Monitor. (c) The community engagement plan must provide for: (i) Directly Affected Persons to be consulted prior to commencement of Project Section 2 Works and ongoing thereafter about Project Works, predicted impacts and mitigation measures; (ii) Directly Affected Persons to be consulted about possible mitigation Section 3 measures; (iii) local communities near Project Works to be informed about the nature of Section 3 construction, including the timing, duration and predicted impacts of the works in advance of their commencement; (iv) information to be provided to public transport, road users, pedestrians and Section 3 cyclists about the predicted effects of Project Works on road, rail and pedestrian and cycle network operations, in advance of their commencement; (v) specific community consultation plans for identified key stakeholders; Section 5 (vi) implementation of an Indigenous employment policy, providing for Section 2.3 Indigenous training and employment opportunities; (vii) a process for advance notification to local communities of Project Works, Section 5 including the timing, duration, predicted impacts and mitigation measures, which is available on the project website and through other media.
    [Show full text]
  • Highways Byways
    Highways AND Byways THE ORIGIN OF TOWNSVILLE STREET NAMES Compiled by John Mathew Townsville Library Service 1995 Revised edition 2008 Acknowledgements Australian War Memorial John Oxley Library Queensland Archives Lands Department James Cook University Library Family History Library Townsville City Council, Planning and Development Services Front Cover Photograph Queensland 1897. Flinders Street Townsville Local History Collection, Citilibraries Townsville Copyright Townsville Library Service 2008 ISBN 0 9578987 54 Page 2 Introduction How many visitors to our City have seen a street sign bearing their family name and wondered who the street was named after? How many students have come to the Library seeking the origin of their street or suburb name? We at the Townsville Library Service were not always able to find the answers and so the idea for Highways and Byways was born. Mr. John Mathew, local historian, retired Town Planner and long time Library supporter, was pressed into service to carry out the research. Since 1988 he has been steadily following leads, discarding red herrings and confirming how our streets got their names. Some remain a mystery and we would love to hear from anyone who has information to share. Where did your street get its name? Originally streets were named by the Council to honour a public figure. As the City grew, street names were and are proposed by developers, checked for duplication and approved by Department of Planning and Development Services. Many suburbs have a theme. For example the City and North Ward areas celebrate famous explorers. The streets of Hyde Park and part of Gulliver are named after London streets and English cities and counties.
    [Show full text]
  • Environmental Management Sub-Plans
    Construction Environmental Management Plan Compliance Matrix CRRDA REQUIREMENT ADDRESSED IN SECTION REFERENCE Coordinator-General’s change report – whole of project refinements 2019 Appendix 1 – Part C. – Condition 4 Construction Environmental Management Plan (a) Prior to the commencement of Project Work, a Construction Environmental This Plan Management Plan for those works (Relevant Project Work) must be developed by the Proponent and endorsed by the Environmental Monitor as being consistent with the Outline EMP and these imposed conditions. (b) The endorsed Construction Environmental Management Plan must be submitted to This Plan the Coordinator General at least 20 business days prior to the commencement of Relevant Project Works. (c) The Construction Environmental Management Plan must: (i) describe the Relevant Project Work Section 2 (ii) be based on predictive studies and assessments of construction impacts Relevant sub-plans which have regard to the scale, intensity, location and duration of construction works, and location of Directly Affected Persons (iii) be generally consistent with the Outline EMP and incorporate its This Plan environmental outcomes and performance criteria (iv) incorporate and respond to the Imposed Conditions (Construction) This Plan and associated Sub-plans (v) demonstrate that the Imposed Conditions (Construction) will be complied This Plan and associated Sub-plans with during Relevant Project Work (vi) incorporate the community engagement plan, including the complaints Sections 4.3, 6 and 8 management
    [Show full text]
  • The Invasion of Sturt Creek Basin (Kimberley Region, Western Australia)
    Into the Kimberley: the invasion of the Sturt Creek Basin (Kimberley region, Western Australia) and evidence of Aboriginal resistance Pamela A Smith The extent to which the traditional owners of the upper Sturt Creek basin in the south­ east Kimberley region resisted the exploration and colonisation of their country in the late nineteenth century is generally underestimated and seldom referred to in historical records. This paper documents the exploration and colonisation of the region and anal­ yses accounts of frontier conflict recorded in diaries and other historical documents from this period. These documents provide evidence of many incidents which, when viewed together, suggest that the traditional owners resisted colonisation as best they could without guns, and that the colonists perceived themselves as invaders. The southeast Kimberley was one of the last regions of Australia to be colonised by Europeans. The upper Sturt Creek basin, which occupies much of the southeast Kim­ berley (Figure 1), was the route used by the first European explorers entering the east Kimberley and a major route used by the first pastoralists entering the Kimberley with herds of cattle from Queensland. Much of this land was, and is, the traditional country of Nyininy language speak­ ers (a dialect of Jaru).1 Explorers and early pastoralists would have passed close to, if not through, several important meeting places of the Nyininy including Sweetwater on the Sturt Creek and Wan.gu (or Wungu) near Old Flora Valley (Tsunoda 1981: xvi, 6-7). This study examines the nature of the interaction between the explorers, the colonising pastoralists and the traditional owners, the Nyininy.
    [Show full text]
  • Section: NSW North Coast &
    Railway Track and Signalling ARTC Defined Interstate Network Section: NSW North Coast & Qld Go to page 2 for index Last Revised 24 June 2021 Diagrams: 316 G F Vincent 2011 NORTH COAST TRACK & SIGNAL INDEX Page Drawing Section Page Drawing Section 1 Cover North Coast 21 N317 Glenreagh ‐ Braunstone 2 Index 22 N318 Grafton 3 Sect. L North Coast 23 N319 Koolkhan ‐ Lawrence Road 4 N507 Maitland 24 N320 Rappville ‐ Leeville 5 N301 Telarah 25 N321 Casino 6 N302 Mindaribba ‐ Martins Creek Queensland Access 7 N303 Kilbride ‐ Wirragulla 26 N322 Nammoona ‐ Kyogle Loop 8 N304 Dungog ‐Stroud Road 27 N323 Wiangaree ‐ Queensland Border (tunnel) 9 N305 Duralie Coal Siding ‐ North Craven 28 Sect. L1 NSW Border ‐ Acacia Ridge 10 N306 Berrico ‐ Bulliac 29 Q341 NSW Border ‐ Glenapp 11 N307 Bundook ‐ Killawarra 30 Q342 Tamrookum 12 N308 Wingham ‐ Taree 31 Q343 Bromleton 13 N309 Kundle Kundle ‐ Coopernook 32 Q344 (Kagaru) 14 N310 Johns River ‐ Kerewong 33 Q345 Greenbank ‐ Acacia Ridge 15 N311 Wauchope 34 Sect L2 Brisbane Freight (QR territory) 16 N312 Telegraph Point ‐ Kundabung 35 B354 Acacia Ridge ‐ Rocklea 17 N313 Kempsey ‐ Tamban 36 B355 Clapham ‐ Yeerongpilly 18 N314 Euangi ‐ Urunga 37 B356 Yeronga ‐ Dutton Park Junction 19 N315 Raleigh ‐ Coffs harbour 38 B357 (Burranda) ‐ (Cannon Hill) 20 N316 Landrigans ‐ Nana Glen 39 B358 Murarrie ‐ Lytton Junction 40 B359 Whyte Island ‐ Fishermans Islands Private Yards and Terminals 42 Q360 Acacia Ridge (Aurizon) 43 Q361 Bromelton (SCT) New South Wales A Coffs Harbour ARTC line to Acacia Ridge (Qld) Loadstone Boambee
    [Show full text]
  • Brisbane City Plan, Appendix 2
    Introduction ............................................................3 Planting Species Planning Scheme Policy .............167 Acid Sulfate Soil Planning Scheme Policy ................5 Small Lot Housing Consultation Planning Scheme Policy ................................................... 168a Air Quality Planning Scheme Policy ........................9 Telecommunication Towers Planning Scheme Airports Planning Scheme Policy ...........................23 Policy ..................................................................169 Assessment of Brothels Planning Scheme Transport, Access, Parking and Servicing Policy .................................................................. 24a Planning Scheme Policy ......................................173 Brisbane River Corridor Planning Scheme Transport and Traffic Facilities Planning Policy .................................................................. 24c Scheme Policy .....................................................225 Centre Concept Plans Planning Scheme Policy ......25 Zillmere Centre Master Plan Planning Scheme Policy .....................................................241 Commercial Character Building Register Planning Scheme Policy ........................................29 Commercial Impact Assessment Planning Scheme Policy .......................................................51 Community Impact Assessment Planning Scheme Policy .......................................................55 Compensatory Earthworks Planning Scheme Policy .................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • IRSE Proceedings 1934
    14 PAVER BY MR. C. Vf. PRESCOTT. General Meeting of the Institution HELD AT The Institution of Electrical Engineers Wednesday, 13th December, 1933. The President (Mr. \ 1\f. CHALLIS) in the Chair. The minutes of the last meeting having been read and confirmed, and Mr. R. J. F. Harland, a member present for the first time, presented to the meeting. The President said that they would remember that at the last meeting he appealed to members to send in subjects suitable for papers to be read before the Institution. He was pleased to say that, as a result of that appeal, they had now sufficient for up to the end of 1934. If any gentleman cared to put fonvard a paper, for reading after that date, the Council would be only too pleased to receive it. The President then called upon the Hon. Secretary to read a paper by Mr. C. W. Prescott (Member) " Railway Signalling in Australia" and said that the meeting was very fortunate in having present that evening two or three members who had been associated with railway working in Australia . Railway Signalling in Australia By C. W. PRESCOTT (Member). (Inset Sheets Nos. 1-2). We are told by those who have studied these matters that, so far as geological characteristics, flora and fauna are concerned, Australia is several aeons younger than other parts of the world including Britain and the United States of America. Large tracts of coal have not had time to turn black, some of the animals have not had time to make up their mind to live on land or in the water or to be mammals or the opposite.
    [Show full text]
  • Northern Settlement Ideas of the 1850S and Sixties Cathie Clement Various
    Clement - Promising imagery Promising imagery: northern settlement ideas of the 1850s and sixties Cathie Clement Various historians have studied early northern Australian settlement but only a few have examined the advocacy that preceded it.^ This paper looks at the advocacy of settlement on the Gulf of Carpentaria in the period after the British Government withdrew its garrison from Arnhem Land.^ At that time, with the best of the continent's lands already alienated, the far north beckoned. Explorers such as Leichhardt (1844-1845), Mitchell (1846), and Kennedy (1847 & 1848) had revealed something of the landscape,^ but others had yet to fill in the blanks. One of those explorers was Augustus Charles Gregory. Born in Nottinghamshire in 1819, he emigrated to the newly established Swan River Colony with his parents and siblings in 1829. He grew into a job with an elder brother who was a contract surveyor and, in late 1841, he joined the survey department. In 1846 and 1848, Gregory led two local expeditions of exploration and impressed Governor FitzGerald as 'a very reliable explorer and one who did not overrate the advantages of his discoveries'. Another expedition in 1852 induced FitzGerald to commend Gregory to the Secretary of State for the Colonies (Henry Pelham- Clinton, 5th Duke of Newcastle) who, in 1854, selected the surveyor to lead an expedition in northern Australia.'* The catalyst for the expedition was a Royal Geographical Society paper presented by Ernest Haug, an Austrian geographer who visited London early in 1853 hoping to secure sponsorship for an expedition. Wanting to build on Leichhardt's findings, he argued that his proposal afforded scope to increase scientific and geographic knowledge.
    [Show full text]
  • Telegraph (Brisbane, Qld. : 1872 - 1947), Tuesday 12 June 1945, Page 5
    Telegraph (Brisbane, Qld. : 1872 - 1947), Tuesday 12 June 1945, page 5 j Released Prisoners Having spent four years as a prisoner of war in Germany eincc his capture on Crete, Private Har- rold Finglcton is now safe In Eng- land. Ho is the eldest son of Mr and Mrs P. Fingleton, of Sandgate. Mr and Mrs R. J. Rice, of Gaunt Street, Newmarket, have been noti fied that their only son. Private Raymond John Rice, is now in Eng land, since his release from a Ger man prisoner of war camp, where he was held for four years. He was captured on Crete. Mrs E. W. Green, of Coorparoo, has received a cable from her hus band Flying Officer E. W. Green, telling of his safe arrival in England from a German prisoner of war is camp. Flying Officer Green the son of Mr and Mrs C L Green, of Toowong. Mrs J Shaw, of Young Street, Annerlcy, has received official ad vice that her only son, Sergt. George A. Shaw. A1F, who was taken prisoner of wnr moro than four years ago, has been repatriated to England. Mrs J. Warner, of 61 Park Road. Wooloowin, has received word that her sons, Privates V. G. nnd W. J. Warner, who have been four years as prisoners of war in Germany are now safe in England. Mrs T. P. R, Hardy lias received a cable from her son, Lieut. Slan B. R. Hardy to say that he has arrived in England fit and well after hav ing been a prisoner of war in Ger many for four years.
    [Show full text]