Studying risks of waste landfill sites on human health: updates and perspectives

OBJECTIVE: Updating current reviews on epidiomiological studies on health effects of waste landfill sites. MATERIALS: Seven ecological studies, two health monitoring investigations and two environmental investigations performed between 2000 and 2004 are discussed. RESULTS: Excesses of risk for cancer incidence, mortality and congenital malformations or no excesses were reported Increasing of low birth weight and different types of symptoms were consistently found. None or very poor environmental data and individual measurements of exposure were available in the majority of the studies. The use of biomarkers and environmental monitoring data to define individual exposure was suggested by some studies. CONCLUSIONS: The development of new and advanced environmental epidemiology studies on health effects of waste sites exposure is now recommended by the scientific community.