Cancer mortality in relation to asbestos in municipal water supplies

The mortality experience of twenty-two municipalities in Quebec grouped by evidence of exposure to asbestos fibers in water supplies (known high, possible high, and probable low exposures) was evaluated. Excess mortality due to cancer of the stomach (males), pancreas (females), and lung (males) was observed in the two municipalities with known high exposures. The excesses among males have been due to occupational exposure to asbestos. The absence of excess mortality due to pancreatic cancer among males suggested that the excess among females was not due to waterborne asbestos. The study therefore did not reveal evidence of excess cancer mortality that could be attributed to exposure to asbestos in drinking water.