The lower proportion of women in studies cannot be fully explained by their under-representation in the target populations, since there were large numbers of women among both potentially exposed workers and patients diagnosed with lung cancer.

Objectives The aim is to examine occupational noise exposure as a risk factor for depression, utilising noise exposure as an objective measure of distressing working conditions that circumvents reporting bias. Method In a 7-year cohort study we followed 109 378 industrial workers and 45 613 financial workers from 2001 or first year of employment thereafter until 2007. At start and end of follow up we recorded mean, full-shift noise exposure levels by personal dosimeters for 1077 workers from randomly selected companies. We assumed a linear relation with calendar year and predicted exposure levels by trade and occupation since 1980 and calculated cumulative noise exposure. Danish national registries provided complete employment histories since 1980, psychiatric diagnoses , and redemption of antidepressants (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors, SSRI) (1994)(1995)(1996)(1997)(1998)(1999)(2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004)(2005)(2006)(2007). Workers with psychiatric diagnoses or use of antidepressants before 2001 were excluded. Results During follow-up we identified 7754 incident users of SSRIs. Among women, risk of starting SSRI medication increased by cumulative noise exposure level OR=1.02 (95% CI: 1.01-1.02) per dB(A)-year when adjusted for age, calendar year and socioeconomic status. When excluding white-collar workers no effect was seen among women and no effect of noise was apparent among men overall. Conclusions These preliminary results do not provide strong evidence that occupational noise exposure is a risk factor for depression. The increased OR seen among all women can be explained by differences in socioeconomic status between the blue-collar industrial workers and the white-collar financial workers since no trends were apparent in internal analyses among blue-collar workers. Objectives The role of occupational exposures in agricultural and industrial settings has been addressed in several breast cancer studies. Recently, the influence of shift work in nurses added as an occupational hazard that has been intensively discussed. Here, we investigate the association of job tasks in the industrial and health sector and breast cancer in a large case-control study. Method The population-based case-control study Gene-ENvironment Interaction and Breast CAncer (GENICA) was conducted in the Greater Region of Bonn, Germany. Occupational history and job task information were collected in computer-assisted interviews. Thirty pre-defined job tasks were assessed for 1143 cases and 1155 controls in addition to the occupational history. Risk estimates were calculated as odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) conditional on age and adjusted for potential confounders. Results First preliminary results indicate an increased ageadjusted risk for women who ever worked in anaesthesia (OR Objectives The "one-eyed science" pointed out by some authors has contributed to the invisibilization of working conditions as a health determinant among women. Our objectives were to document current epidemiological practices...