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Antineoplastic drugs contamination of workplace surfaces in two Portuguese hospitals

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Abstract

Despite the classification as known or suspected human carcinogens, by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, the antineoplastic drugs are extensively used in cancer treatment due to their specificity and efficacy. As human carcinogens, these drugs represent a serious threat to the healthcare workers involved in their preparation and administration. This work aims to contribute to better characterize the occupational exposure of healthcare professionals to antineoplastic drugs, by assessing workplace surfaces contamination of pharmacy and administration units of two Portuguese hospitals. Surface contamination was assessed by the determination of cyclophosphamide, 5-fluorouracil, and paclitaxel. These three drugs were used as surrogate markers for surfaces contamination by cytotoxic drugs. Wipe samples were taken and analyzed by HPLC-DAD. From the total of 327 analyzed samples, in 121 (37 %) was possible to detect and quantify at least one drug. Additionally, 28 samples (8.6 %) indicate contamination by more than one antineoplastic drug, mainly in the administration unit, in both hospitals. Considering the findings in both hospitals, specific measures should be taken, particularly those related with the promotion of good practices and safety procedures and also routine monitoring of surfaces contamination in order to guarantee the appliance of safety measures.

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Acknowledgments

The study would not have been possible to develop without the financial support given by Portuguese Authority of Working Conditions (Project reference: 036APJ/09).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. RG Environment and Health. Lisbon School of Health Technology. Polytechnic Institute of Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal

    Susana Viegas, Mário Pádua, Elisabete Carolino & Mário Gomes

  2. Center for Malaria & Tropical Diseases (CMDT) – Public Health and Policy, Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal

    Susana Viegas

  3. Lisbon School of Health Technology- Polytechnic Institute of Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal

    Ana Costa Veiga

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  1. Susana Viegas
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  2. Mário Pádua
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  3. Ana Costa Veiga
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  4. Elisabete Carolino
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  5. Mário Gomes
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Correspondence to Susana Viegas.

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Viegas, S., Pádua, M., Veiga, A.C. et al. Antineoplastic drugs contamination of workplace surfaces in two Portuguese hospitals. Environ Monit Assess 186, 7807–7818 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-014-3969-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-014-3969-1

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