Women with jobs that involve metalworking fluids may have a higher risk of developing breast cancer, a preliminary study suggests. The new study looked at women who spent at least three years working at one of three large car manufacturing plants in the US. Among the nearly 4,700 women the researchers followed, the risk of breast cancer increased in tandem with exposure to soluble, oil-based metalworking fluids. Writing in the American Journal of Industrial Medicine, the authors say: ‘This preliminary investigation revealed weak evidence of an association between lifetime cumulative exposure to soluble metalworking fluids and breast cancer risk.’

Deborah Thompson and others. Occupational exposure to metalworking fluids and risk of breast cancer among female autoworkers, American Journal of Industrial Medicine, volume 47, issue 2, pages 153-160, 2005.