CAREX Canada

April 2012 marks the beginning of the Partnership’s second five-year mandate and the next phase of implementing Canada’s national cancer strategy. The priorities and initiatives for the next five years are outlined in our 2012-2017 strategic plan, Sustaining Action Toward a Shared Vision. Our website will soon be updated to reflect the activities supporting the strategic plan. The information below reflects the priorities and accomplishments of our work between 2007 and 2012. 

Increasing knowledge about exposure to carcinogens

Success in reducing Canadians’ exposure to carcinogens is tied to knowledge about the presence of these substances in our workplaces and communities. CAREX Canada is mapping patterns of exposure in workplaces and in the air, water and soil. As it becomes available, this information is shared through the CAREX Canada resource centre and carcinogen database. In addition, CAREX actively engages with research, practice and policy specialists who can use this data to inform the development of evidence-based policies and practices that will help to make Canadians healthier.

This work supports prevention activities by identifying knowledge gaps and priorities for future cancer prevention research in Canada, identifying groups at high risk for developing cancer based on exposures, assessing the impact of regulations related to carcinogenic exposure, and setting priorities for action to reduce carcinogens in our environment.

Progress to date

• Specialized reports have been produced on environmental and occupational exposures for Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec and for every street block in Canada, average outdoor concentrations of benzene, ethylbenzene, 1,3-butadiene and fine particulates (PM 2.5) have been estimated. This information was provided to Health Canada researchers for use in national cohort studies on air pollution and health.
• An estimate has been developed of the number of Canadians exposed to more than 30 different known, probable and possible carcinogens at work and in the environment.
• The carcinogen resource centre has been expanded to include profiles for more than 60 substances.
• To support CAREX Canada’s Canadian Workplace Exposure Database project and ultimately enhance local prevention programs, data-sharing agreements are being developed with provincial and territorial ministries.