Lung cancer study on diesel fumes delayed

Publication of a study on 12,000 U.S. miners exposed to diesel engine exhaust was delayed by an industry group and a U.S House committee, a watchdog group said. A federal judge affirmed the right of the groups to review the materials before they are made public. The $11.5 million investigation by the National Cancer Institute and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health to determine if diesel fumes cause lung cancer has already been 20 years in the making, the Center for Public Integrity said Monday. The non-profit watchdog group said a strong link between diesel fumes and cancer could have implications for underground mining, trucking, rail and shipping industries. "It's alarming that special interests appear to be trying to derail independent, peer-reviewed science," U.S. Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., said in a statement to the Center for Public Integrity. "Politics and profits should never be allowed to meddle with the scientific process, especially when health and safety are at stake." U.S Rep. John Kline, R-Minn., chairman of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, said there is no agenda and the committee is trying to ensure the results of the research "are accurate and meet the highest standards of scientific review."