防虫剤原料及防火壁保護材料可能致癌

A few weeks age Yomiuri News on-line reported the following:

防虫剤原料ナフタレンに発がん性…健康被害恐れ

2014年07月25日 19時40分

　防虫剤の原料などとして使用される「ナフタレン」と、防火壁保護材などに使われる「リフラクトリーセラミックファイバー」について、厚生労働省の専門家検討会は２５日、発がん性があるため、製造や取り扱いをする事業所では、作業員の体内に取り込まれないようにする防護措置を取らなければ、健康被害を及ぼす恐れがあるとする報告書をまとめた。

　今後、同省が具体的な措置内容を検討し、事業所に実施を義務づける。

　世界保健機関（ＷＨＯ）に所属し、化学物質などの発がん性を評価している専門組織、国際がん研究機関（ＩＡＲＣ）は２００２年、二つの物質を、５段階のリスク評価で３番目に危険性が高い「発がん性を示す可能性がある」レベルに分類。厚労省が労働現場の使用実態を調査し、健康被害のリスクを検討してきた。

(試譯文)

In an expert review meeting held on the 25^th (July) the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, about a report they compiled on "naphthalene", a raw materials for insect repellent, and "refractory ceramic fiber", which had been used as firewall protection material, said that because they were carcinogenic, business that handled and manufactured them had to take protective measures to prevent their absorption into workers’ body, otherwise there was a risk of health hazard.

From now on, the said ministry would examine the concrete contents of the measures to take, and would impose a duty on business environment for enforcement.

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), a special organization under the World Health Organization (WHO) which evaluated carcinogenicity, such as in chemical substances, had classified these two substances at the 3rd highest-risk level "that may show carcinogenicity" according to a five-step risk assessment in 2002. The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare would investigate the actual condition of using them in the labor working environment, and examine the risk of health impairment.

The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan is doing a good job.