Claire Smith, editor of the British media brand New Civil Engineer, offered an unusual but important message in her latest editorial. She draws the connection between worksite conditions and workers’ risk of cancer, following her own diagnosis with skin cancer.
In researching this month’s article with Cancer Research UK (CRUK) and Amey, I was stunned to learn that one in two people born after 1960 will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime. Worse, only half of those diagnosed will survive for 10 years or more. The figures for anyone working in the construction sector are even more stark. The charity’s evidence suggests that people working in the construction industry are more likely to get cancer and die from the disease compared to the national population. … Amey managing director for transport infrastructure Peter Anderson told me that lifestyle, diet, and sun exposure gives construction workers an increased likelihood of cancer. He is urging the industry as a whole to address cancer risk and just like addressing safety risks on site, dealing with this risk won’t happen by chance either.