Evidence map›Paper›PMID 32767014›Full record

SynthesisEnvironmental science and pollution research international2020

The association between air pollution and cancers: controversial evidence of a systematic review.

Negar Pourvakhshoori, Hamid Reza Khankeh, Marcus Stueck, Mehrdad Farrokhi

Abstract readSystematic Review
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Environmental science and pollution research international, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Impact of Pollution on Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis with Focus on Air Pollution.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2026
    Pooled it
  2. Ambient Air Pollution and Risk of Brain Tumors: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention : APJCP · 2026
    Pooled it
  3. Exposure to outdoor air pollution at different periods and the risk of leukemia: a meta-analysis.Environmental science and pollution research international · 2021
    Pooled it
  4. Review
  5. Article
  6. Pollution, Inflammation, and Vaccines: A Complex Crosstalk.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021
    Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Negar PourvakhshooriHealth in Emergency and Disaster Research Center, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Hamid Reza KhankehDepartment of Clinical Science and Education, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden.
Marcus StueckDFPA Academy of Work and Health, Leipzig, Germany.
Mehrdad FarrokhiHealth in Emergency and Disaster Research Center, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran, Iran. mfarokhikhb@yahoo.com.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

There are inconsistent reports on the association between air pollution and cancers. This systematic review was, therefore, conducted to ascertain the relationship between air pollution and some cancers. This is a systematic review study, which all articles published in this area were extracted from January 1, 1950 to December 31, 2018 from Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, EMBASE, Science Direct, Google scholar. Searching was performed independently by two search-method experts. The required data were extracted from the articles by an author-made questionnaire. Forty-eight articles were investigated. Evidence linking air pollution to some cancers is limited. Leukemia had the highest association with exposure to various air pollutants and bladder cancer had the lowest association. It is noteworthy that the specific type of pollutants in all studies was not specified. Based on the findings, the results are contradictory, and the role of air pollution in some cancers cannot be supported. Accordingly, studies are recommended to be performed at the individual level or multifactorial studies to specifically investigate the relationship between air pollution and these types of cancers. In this way, the role of air pollution in the incidence of these cancers can be determined more accurately.

Indexed as

NeoplasmsAir PollutantsAir PollutionEnvironmental ExposureHumansAir PollutantsAir pollutionCancerSystematic review

Identifiers

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.