Chip industry group commissions cancer risk study

A U.S. semiconductor industry group has commissioned Vanderbilt University to conduct a study on whether chip factories increases the risk of cancer, the group announced Tuesday.

It will be one of the largest privately sponsored studies of its kind ever conducted, costing millions of dollars, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA). SIA members will fund the study.

None of the scientific research published to date suggests that people employed in semiconductor manufacturing face increased cancer risks, according to George Scalise, SIA´s president. The group hopes that the study, which will cover about 85,000 people who worked in chip factories over the past 30 years, will add significantly to its knowledge about potential cancer risks in the chip industry, he said in a statement.

The study comes at a time of heightened awareness of health and environmental issues in the technology industry. Some groups have called for PC parts makers to reduce the amount of harmful materials, such as lead, in their products.

In one example, Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD) last month began shipping chips with reduced lead content, a move aimed at complying with European Union regulations that restrict the amount of the metal that may be used in semiconductors.

Researchers at the Vanderbilt University-Ingram Cancer Center will conduct the study. Results are expected by the spring of 2009, the SIA said.

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