What is done to protect workers from vinyl chloride monomer, which is carcinogenic?
Most cases of cancer have no known cause but some are related to the exposure to certain chemicals, including VCM. From information on cancers in general, it is known that one single exposure does not develop a cancer. Only workers repeatedly exposed during many years to high levels (orders of magnitude higher than those currently permitted) have developed Angiosarcoma of the Liver (ASL). ASL is a very rare form of cancer of the blood vessels of the liver which has been known to pathologists for very many years. Once it was known that there was a relationship with VCM, the association of Angiosarcoma of the Liver (ASL) with occupational exposure to VCM was established in 1974. Once this association was established, industry led the way in reducing exposures drastically. We do not believe that any worker who started work after 1975 is currently at risk in plants located in the countries (such as Western Europe) where strict controls were introduced following the discovery of this proble
