Diverse classes of chemicals can induce cancer in animals and men. A review is given on laboratory detoxification of some types of chemical carcinogens and the basic principles involved in laboratory safety.
No general techniques exist for the decontamination of such substances. Effective methods for the destruction of aflatoxins, aromatic amines, chloroethers, hydrazines, N‐nitrosamines and ‐amides, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and some single substances (e.g. yperites, selected nitro compounds, azides, triazenes, dioxins, and captane, mercapto purine, thioguanine) in laboratory wastes are described. The methods preferred by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (Lyon) are especially considered.
Destruction techniques for chemical carcinogens must be efficient, complete, irreversible, rapid, reproducible, easy to perform, and the product of detoxification must be free of mutagenic and/or carcinogenic activity.