Grant: Doctoral Award - Frederick Banting and Charles Best Canada Graduate Scholarships

Antineoplastic drugs are administered primarily for the treatment of cancer. However, these agents are non-selective and can affect both cancerous as well as healthy cells. An association between healthcare workers' contact with antineoplastic drugs and adverse health effects has been reported in the literature. The proposed study builds upon a previous pilot study that demonstrated antineoplastic contamination of hospital pharmacies was quite common and that pharmacy staff had drug residue on their hands. A full-scale study, to be conducted in British Columbia (BC), is proposed with four main objectives: 1: Identify the numbers and types of healthcare workers who are at risk of exposure to antineoplastic drugs at hospitals with pharmacies in three health authorities; 2: Assess the risk of occupational dermal exposure as well as biological uptake of antineoplastic drugs in all healthcare job categories that are in potential contact with the drug products and/or drug-contaminated surfaces within each facility; 3: Compare contamination levels across settings within and between participating health authorities to identify potential determinants of exposure; and 4: Evaluate the knowledge, perceptions, and beliefs of healthcare workers who are at risk of exposure to antineoplastic agents in order to identify possible barriers to compliance with safe work practices. With the rates of cancer increasing, the use of antineoplastics will continue and thus it is prudent to better understand the factors associated with occupational exposure to antineoplastic drugs in healthcare. This is an important population health initiative as it is estimated that 50% of hospital workers are at risk of exposure to antineoplastics. The goal of this study is to strengthen existing control measures which will be beneficial to those who work with antineoplastic drugs, health and safety professionals, risk managers as well as policy makers.