Chemotherapy – What you don’t know might hurt you

Chemotherapy treatment has been responsible for saving the lives of millions of cancer patients, but this same treatment may be killing those that administer it.  By design, chemo drugs are deadly.  Chemotherapy drugs are used to exterminate fast-dividing cancer cells in the body, in order to return the body to its normal state.  Also, chemicals similar to chemo drugs were used in World War I as deadly mustard gas against soldiers. 

Studies from as far back as the 1970’s linked chemo agent exposure with increased rates of cancer, but it wasn’t until the mid-1980’s that Occupational Safety and Health Specialists (OSHA) deemed chemotherapy agents “hazardous.” Thousands of healthcare workers were chronically exposed to these agents on the job before voluntary regulations were put into place. 

Although the drugs and byproducts of chemotherapy are considered toxic, recent findings from the Pacific Northwest based investigative journal, InvestigateWest, show that OSHA does not regulate exposure in the workplace.  A new study done by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) confirms that chemo continues to contaminate these facilities, despite knowledge of the dangers and the safety precautions necessary to avoid them.

 In regards to these findings, OSHA claims to have no regulatory authority over the matter other than under their “General Duty” clause – a clause that allows inspectors to warn institutions if they see a concern.  InvestigateWest documents that OSHA has only used the General Duty clause once in the last 10 years to warn a healthcare facility of their handling of hazardous material. 

There are several chemotherapy drugs that are regulated under RCRA hazardous wastes standards, but many others are not.  Due to this disconnect in the OSHA and RCRA regulation, most hospitals and other healthcare facilities have customized procedures for employee handling of chemo agents.  This confusion about regulation and hazardous material determination is a common problem in the healthcare industry. 

Workers in the Healthcare field come into more contact with known human carcinogens than workers from any other occupation.  For this reason, most occupational health specialists advocate for stricter regulation of chemotherapy drugs and chemo waste.  In order to reduce confusion, changes must be made on a federal level.  More needs to be done to protect the people that help save so many lives.

If you have any questions please contact Steve Todisco, Senior Healthcare Account Manager Triumvirate Environmental Cell: 339-226-0524, stodisco@triumvirate.com