Researchers, including those from Universite de Montreal in Canada, assessed the link between cancer and work-related stress perceived by men throughout their working life.
On average, the study participants had held four jobs, with some holding up to a dozen or more during their working lifetime.
Significant links to five of the eleven cancers considered in the study were revealed. These links were observed in men who had been exposed to 15 to 30 years of work-related stress, and in some cases, more than 30 years.
The most stressful jobs included firefighter, industrial engineer, aerospace engineer, mechanic foreman and vehicle and railway-equipment repair worker.
More From This Section
For the same individual, stress varied depending on the job held. Researchers were able to document changes in perceived work-related stress.
The study also shows that perceived stress is not limited to high work load and time constraints.
Customer service, sales commissions, responsibilities, the participant's anxious temperament, job insecurity, financial problems, challenging or dangerous work conditions, employee supervision, interpersonal conflict and a difficult commute were all sources of stress listed by the participants.
The results obtained raise the question of whether chronic psychological stress should be viewed as a public health issue, they said.
However, these results are as yet unsubstantiated because they are based on a summary assessment of work-related stress for a given job, researchers said.
The research was published in the journal Preventive Medicine.