6533b7d9fe1ef96bd126be18

RESEARCH PRODUCT

Theories and methods to assess the social cost of occupational risk factors in France : application to the case of occupational cancers

subject

description

The main objective of this thesis is to evaluate the social cost of respiratory cancer attributable to occupational risk factors in France. A summary of the available epidemiological data in the literature is performed. By using the Medline database, a review of the literature restricted to meta-analysis highlights the relative risk data available. The method of Attributable Risks (AR) is mobilized to estimate the numbers of lung, sinonasal and mesothelioma cancer cases caused by asbestos, exhaust fumes from diesel engines, painters, crystalline silica, wood dust and leather dust. We then assess the costs of these cancer cases for the french society using the Cost Of Illness (COI) method. To take into account all indirect costs we develop a decision tree to estimate the probability of being involved in each cost category. We set up cancer-specific assessment models for each category of costs that allow us to estimate, according to incidence-based and prevalence-based approaches, direct costs (hospital and ambulatory care), indirect costs of morbidity (absenteeism and presenteeism) and mortality in the market and nonmarket spheres. For 2010, the social cost of lung, sinonasal and mesothelioma cancer cases caused by asbestos, exhaust fumes from diesel engines, painters, crystalline silica, dust wood and leather dust in France is estimated between 986 and 1 248 million euros according to prevalence-based approach and between 1 223 and 1 586 million euros according to incidence-based approach among which 760 to 806 million euros only for asbestos.