Occupational exposure to extremely low-frequency magnetic fields (ELF-MF) and postmenopausal breast cancer risk

Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine · 2025 · Mixed · Low evidence

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MixedLow evidencePaper 2540

Overall, no association was found between occupational ELF-MF exposure and postmenopausal breast cancer risk. Positive associations were observed in some analyses restricted to exposures occurring 0–10 years before interview or during breast development, part…

Study snapshot

PublicationJournal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine · 2025

Study typecase_control

Reported directionMixed

Evidence ratingLow

Abstract

Category: Epidemiology Tags: ELF-MF, occupational exposure, breast cancer, postmenopausal, epidemiology, magnetic fields, case-control study DOI: 10.1097/jom.0000000000003564 URL: journals.lww.com Overview This study aimed to estimate the association between occupational exposures to extremely low-frequency magnetic fields (ELF-MF) and the risk of postmenopausal breast cancer. - Population-based case-control study conducted between 2008-2011 in Montréal, Canada. - Histologically-confirmed breast cancer cases and matched controls participated, with 663 cases and 592 controls included. - Lifetime job histories were linked to a job-exposure matrix to estimate geometric mean ELF-MF exposure per workday. Methods - Logistic regression analysis was performed. - Outcomes measured included cumulative, average, maximum, and duration of maximum ELF-MF exposure. - Analyses adjusted for individual-level and ecological covariables. Findings - Overall, no association was found between occupational ELF-MF exposure and postmenopausal breast cancer risk. - However, when exposures were restricted to those occurring 0-10 years before interview or during breast development, some positive associations were observed, especially for ER+/PR+ tumours. Conclusion - The findings suggest no general association between occupational ELF-MF exposure and postmenopausal breast cancer. Nonetheless, the observed positive associations in certain subgroups indicate a possible health risk for specific exposure windows or tumor subtypes, highlighting the need for further research and EMF safety considerations.

Machine Enhanced Logic

AI evidence extraction

Structured fields below were generated from the paper’s abstract and metadata to make the evidence easier to inspect. Automated extraction may be incomplete or incorrect; verify important details against the original paper.

Study typecase_control

Effect directionmixed

PopulationPostmenopausal women in Montréal, Canada (population-based case-control; histologically confirmed breast cancer cases and matched controls)

Sample size1255

ExposureELF · Lifetime job histories; exposure windows examined included 0–10 years before interview and during breast development

Evidence strengthLowConfidence: 74% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

Outcomes measured

Postmenopausal breast cancer risk
ER+/PR+ tumour subtype risk

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "case_control",
  "exposure": {
    "band": "ELF",
    "source": "occupational",
    "frequency_mhz": null,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": "Lifetime job histories; exposure windows examined included 0–10 years before interview and during breast development"
  },
  "population": "Postmenopausal women in Montréal, Canada (population-based case-control; histologically confirmed breast cancer cases and matched controls)",
  "sample_size": 1255,
  "outcomes": [
    "Postmenopausal breast cancer risk",
    "ER+/PR+ tumour subtype risk"
  ],
  "main_findings": "Overall, no association was found between occupational ELF-MF exposure and postmenopausal breast cancer risk. Positive associations were observed in some analyses restricted to exposures occurring 0–10 years before interview or during breast development, particularly for ER+/PR+ tumours.",
  "effect_direction": "mixed",
  "limitations": [],
  "evidence_strength": "low",
  "confidence": 0.74,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "ELF-MF",
    "extremely low-frequency magnetic fields",
    "occupational exposure",
    "breast cancer",
    "postmenopausal",
    "case-control",
    "job-exposure matrix",
    "Montréal"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": [
    {
      "slug": "occupational-exposure",
      "weight": 0.95,
      "reason": "Study evaluates occupational ELF-MF exposure using lifetime job histories and a job-exposure matrix in a population-based case-control design."
    }
  ]
}

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AI-extracted fields are generated from the abstract and metadata and may be incomplete or incorrect. This material is for informational purposes and is not medical advice.

Identifiers and source

DOI: 10.1097/jom.0000000000003564
PubMed: Not supplied

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