Carcinogenic and toxic substances
The following list of carcinogenic chemicals is not exhaustive. Chemicals that are structural analogues to known carcinogens should be handled carefully because adequate data on carcinogenicity of such analogues may never become available. It is prudent to regard all chemicals belonging to certain chemical classes (e.g. polycyclic hydrocarbons, nitrosamines, aromatic amines, azo dyes, arsenic compounds) as presenting a carcinogenic hazard. Consequently some chemicals have been grouped into general classes to highlight the risk associated with the class of compound.
| Schedule 1 Carcinogens |
|---|
| 2-acetylaminofluorene |
| aflatoxins |
| 4-Aminodiphenyl |
| Acrylonitrile benzidine and its salts (including benzidine dihydrochloride) |
| Acrylonitrile benzidine and its salts (including benzidine dihydrochloride) |
| bis(chloromethyl)ether |
| chloromethyl methyl ether (technical grade which contains bis(chloromethyl)ether) |
| 4-Dimethylaminoazobenzene |
| 2-Naphthylamine and its salts |
| 4-Nitrodiphenyl |
| Schedule 2 Notifiable Carcinogenic Substances |
|---|
| Acrylonitrile |
| Benzene |
| 3,3-Dichlorobenzidine and its salts |
| Diethyl sulfate |
| Dimethyl sulfate |
| Ethylene dibromide when used as a fumigant |
| 4,4-Methylene bis(2-chloroaniline) (MOCA) |
| 2-Propiolactone |
| o-Toluidine and o-Toluidine hydrochloride |
| Vinyl chloride monomer |
Scheduled Carcinogens are prohibited substances that can only be used in a licenced laboratory. If there are any of these chemicals in your laboratory, please contact the Stewardship Manager or a Safety Officer as soon as possible, in order that WorkCover be notified and the Hazardous Substances Regulations be complied with.
Chemicals considered to present a carcinogenic hazard to humans are listed below by their chemical name and Chemical Abstract Services number (CAS no.).
| Chemical name | CAS No. | Tested by |
|---|---|---|
| Acetamide | IARC | |
| Acetaldehyde | 75-07-0 | IARC 2B, NTP |
| 2-Acetylaminofluorene | 53-96-3 | OSHA, NTP |
| Acrylonitrile | 107-13-1 | OSHA*, IARC 2A |
| Acrylamide | 79-06-1 | IARC 2A, NTP |
| Adriamycin | 23214-92-8 | IARC 2A, NTP |
| Aflatoxins | IARC 1, NTP | |
| p-Aminoazobenzene | 60-09-3 | IARC 2B |
| o-Aminoazotoluene | 97-56-4 | IARC 2B, NTP |
| 4-Aminobiphenyl | 92-67-1 | NTP |
| Arsenic and arsenic compounds# | OSHA*, IARC 1, NTP | |
| Azathioprine | 446-86-6 | IARC 1, NTP |
| Benzene | 71-43-2 | OSHA*, IARC 1, NTP |
| Benzidine | 92-87-5 | OSHA, IARC 1, NTP |
| Benzidine derivatives or example: | IARC 2A, NTP | |
| Benzidine - based dyes | ||
| o-Anisidine | 90-04-0 | IARC 2B |
| N,N'-Diacetylbenzidine | 613-35-4 | |
| 3,3'-Dichlorobenzidine | 91-94-1 | |
| 3,3'-Dimethoxybenzidine (o-Dianisidine) | 119-90-4 | |
| 3,3'-Dimethylbenzidine 9 (o-Toluidine) | 119-93-7 | |
| p-Cresidine | 120-71-8 | |
| Beryllium (7440-41-7) and beryllium compounds | ||
| N,N-bis (2-Chloroethyl)-2-naphthylamine (Chlornaphazine) | 494-03-1 | |
| Bis(chloromethyl) ether | 432-88-1 | |
| 1,4-Butanediol dimethanesulfonate (Myleran) | 55-98-1 | |
| Butyrolactone | 36536-46-6 | IARC 2B |
| Cadmium and cadmium compounds | 7440-43-9 | OSHA*, IARC 1, NTP |
| Chlorambucil | 305-03-3 | IARC 1, NTP |
| Carbon tetachloride | IARC 2B, NTP | |
| 4-Chloro-o-toluidine | 6164-98-3 | IARC 2A |
| 4-Chloro-o-phenylenediamine | 95-83-0 | IARC 2B, NTP |
| Chromium compounds, hexavalent# | IARC 1, NTP | |
| Cisplatin | 15663-27-1 | IARC 2A, NTP |
| Cyclophosphamide | 6055-19-2 | IARC 1, NTP |
| Daunomycin | 20830-81-3 | IARC 2B |
| 2,4-Diaminoanisole (2,4-DAA) | 615-05-4 | IARC 2B |
| 2,4-Diaminotoluene (2,4-DAT) | 95-80-7 | IARC 2B, NTP |
| Dianiline derivatives with methylene -,oxy-,thio-and other bridges, for example: 3,3'-Dichloro-4,4'-diaminodiphenylether | 28434-86-8 | IARC 2B |
| 4,4'-Methylene bis (2-chloroaniline) (MOCA) | 101-14-4 | |
| 4,4'-Methylenedianiline (MDA) | 101-77-9 | IARC 2B, NTP |
| 4,4'-Methylene bis (2-methylaniline) | 868-88-0 | |
| 4,4'-Oxydianiline (4,4'-diaminodiphenyl ether) | 101-80-4 | IARC 2B |
| 4,4'-Thiodianiline | 139-65-1 | IARC 2B |
| 1,2-Dibromo-3-chloropropane (DBCP) | 96-12-8 | OSHA*, IARC 2B, NTP |
| Diethyl sulfate | 64-67-5 | IARC 2A, NTP |
| Diethyl hydrazine | 1615-80-1 | IARC 2B |
| 1,1-Dimethyl hydrazine | 57-14-7 | IARC 2A, NTP |
| 1,2-Dimethyl hydrazine | 306-37-6 | IARC 2A |
| Dimethylcarbamoyl chloride | 79-44-7 | IARC 2A, NTP |
| Dimethyl sulfate | 77-78-1 | IARC 2A, NTP |
| 1,4-Dioxane | 123-91-1 | IARC 2B, NTP |
| Epichlorohydrin | 106-89-8 | IARC 2A, NTP |
| Ethylene dibromide | 106-93-4 | IARC 2A, NTP |
| Epoxides for example: Diepoxybutane | 1464-53-5 | IARC 2A, NTP |
| Ethylene oxide | 75-21-8 | OSHA*, IARC 1, NTP |
| Propylene oxide | 75-56-9 | IARC 2B, NTP |
| Formaldehyde | 50-00-0 | OSHA*, IARC 2A, NTP |
| Hexamethylphosphoramide | 680-31-9 | IARC 2B, NTP |
| 2-Naphthylamine | 91-59-8 | OSHA |
| Nickel and nickel compounds# | IARC 1, NTP | |
| Nitrosocompounds for example: Bis(chloroethyl) nitrosourea (BCNU) | 154-93-8 | IARC 2A, NTP |
| 1-(2-Chloroethyl)-3-cyclohexyl-1-nitrosourea (CCNU) | 13010-47-4 | IARC 2A, NTP |
| N-Ethyl-N-nitrosourea | 759-73-9 | IARC 2A |
| N-Methyl-N'-nitro-N-Nitrosoguanidine (MNNG) | 70-25-7 | IARC 2A, NTP |
| N-Nitrosodimethylamine | 62-75-9 | IARC 2A, NTP |
| Polycyclic aromatic hydocarbons for example: Benz(a) anthracene | 56-55-3 | IARC 2A, NTP |
| Benzo(a) pyrene | 50-32-8 | IARC 2A, NTP |
| Dibenz (a,h) anthracene | 189-64-0 | IARC 2A, NTP |
| Styrene | 100-42-5 | IARC 2B |
| Styrene oxide | 96-90-3 | IARC 2A |
| o-Toluidine | 95-53-4 | IARC 2B, NTP |
| Treosulfan | 299-75-2 | IARC 1 |
| Tris (2,3-dibromopropyl) phosphate | 126-72-7 | IARC 2A, NTP |
| Vinyl chloride | 75-01-4 | OSHA*, IARC 1, NTP |
| # Evidence of carcinogenicity applies to the group of chemicals as a whole and not necessarily to all individual chemicals. IARC - International Agency for Research on Cancer, NTP - National Toxicology Program, OSHA - Occupational Safety & Health Administration, OSHA* - indicates substances for which OSHA has promulgated standards for health in addition to carcinogenicity Class 1 -- Known human carcinogen Class 2A -- Probable human carcinogen Class 2B -- Possible human carcinogen Class 3 -- Not classifiable for human carcinogenicity Class 4 -- Probably not carcinogenic to humans | ||
Cyanides
The use of cyanides is regulated under the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Regulations (Part V - Special Poisons - arsenic, cyanide, strychnine). All users within the School must conform to the National Occupational Health and Safety Commission's Guidelines (pdf 56.9kb) on the safe use of cyanides as well as the School's own policy.
Mercury and its compounds
Because of its toxicity and the difficulty of cleaning up spills the use of mercury should be kept to a minimum.Any large spillage of mercury should be reported to the Safety Officer and an Incident Report submitted. Small droplets of mercury may be difficult to sweep up and should be removed with a small amount of zinc dust, making sure to remove any surplus zinc dust.All mercury compounds should be treated as hazardous. Dialkylmercury compounds are extremely dangerous - a single drop on the skin can cause death.