Prediction and Monitoring of the Carcinogenicity of Polycyclic Aromatic Compounds (PACs)

Abstract

The manufacture and use of synthetic chemicals and the production and utilization of energy are primarily responsible for an increase in the worldwide production and distribution of chemicals. Health authorities are concerned about the extent to which response to low levels of carcinogens plays a role in the etiology of cancer (Rall 1990). The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) Monographs Supplement 7 (IARC 1987) lists 39 chemicals or groups of chemicals and 11 industrial processes known to cause cancer in humans. Of these, five processes, six substances, and three chemicals listed in Table 1 involve polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs).