E-Paper
Night shift ups ovarian cancer risk
Working night shifts may increase the risk of developing ovarian cancer, a new study has warned.
Working night shifts may increase the risk of developing ovarian cancer, a new study has warned.
Working night shifts was associated with a 24% increased risk of advanced ovarian cancer and a 49% increased risk of early stage disease compared with those who worked normal office hours, according to the research published in journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine.
Among the women with invasive cancer, around 1 in 4 (26.6%) had ever worked nights, compared with 1 in 3 (32.4%) of those with borderline disease and around 1 in 5 (22.5%) of the comparison group.
The stint of night shifts averaged between 2.7 and 3.5 years across all three groups of women, with jobs in healthcare, food preparation and service, and office and admin support the most common types of employment. The authors based their findings on 1,101 women.
