Abstract
Objectives The purpose of this study was to investigate Japanese nurses’ awareness of the adverse effects of occupational exposure to anticancer drugs and safe handling, as well as their associations.
Methods A self-rating questionnaire was mailed to 939 nurses in 107 university hospitals, 13 cancer-special hospitals, and 193 general hospitals with over 300 beds and at least five or more clinics in Japan. A total of 571 female nurses responded to the questionnaire.
Results About 40% of the nurses were not at all aware of the potential adverse effects of occupational exposure to anticancer drugs. Eighty-eight percent of the nurses prepared anticancer drugs in the hospital wards; in most cases, nurses, not doctors or pharmacists, transported and administered such drugs to cancer patients. Regarding safety, 39% of the nurses took protective countermeasures against anticancer drugs; 15% paid special attention to the handling environment; 10% had guidelines for the handling of anticancer drugs; and, only 7% took countermeasures with body fluids or linen handling of cancer patients. Although 82% of the nurses were concerned about the potential health effects of occupational exposure, 75% or over did not know whether the exposure might affect their future health or progeny. Awareness of adverse effects was significantly related with precaution in anticancer drug handling, for which 95% of the nurses stated a desire for special education and training.
Conclusions Approximately 60% of Japanese nurses are aware of the risk of occupational exposure to anticancer drugs, but this might be an overestimate because of the sampling bias. Since only small numbers of nurses take sufficient safety precaution, programs for education and training for safe handling of anticancer drugs are crucial.
