Eurostat released a report this week revealing that 40,538 cases of occupational cancers were officially recognised across the European Union between 2013 and 2023, highlighting the long-term health risks faced in various working environments.
In 2023 alone, 3,500 occupational cancers were recognised, which was 191 cases more than the 3,309 cases recorded in 2022.
Occupational cancer is defined as cancer caused by exposure to carcinogenic factors in the working environment, typically resulting from long-term exposure.
Many of these cases only emerge several years after the initial exposure, sometimes as long as 40 years later.
The figures for 2020 (3,094 cases), 2021 (3,258), and 2022 (3,309) were all lower than the annual average of 3,909 cases per year recorded between 2013 and 2019.
This dip was possibly due to the impact of the global pandemic on work environments and healthcare systems, according to the statistical body.
A closer look at the data from 2013 to 2023 shows that the most common types of recognised occupational cancers were lung cancer, with 16,499 cases, and mesothelioma, with 16,469 cases.
Mesothelioma is a type of cancer that develops in the thin layer of tissue covering many internal organs, known as the mesothelium, and is often connected to asbestos exposure.
These two types of cancers combined accounted for 81.3 per cent of all newly recognised occupational cancer cases during the 11-year period.
They were followed by bladder cancer, which saw 2,696 recognised cases over the same period.
