The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) is now accepting proposals for the 2021 Grants Program Strategic Initiative: Occupational Asbestos Exposure and Development of Gastro-intestinal Cancers (Systematic Review)

Proposal deadline: Monday, May 31, 2021

To express interest and obtain an application form, please email grants@wsib.on.ca.

New Funding Opportunity

The WSIB is seeking applications for a new funding competition. The WSIB Grants Program will be awarding one successful application for a systematic review of the scientific evidence examining if occupational asbestos exposure causes gastro-intestinal cancers.

Outcomes from the systematic review may be considered by the WSIB to determine whether the scientific evidence meets the recommended standards for scheduling, policy development or to underpin adjudicative support in case-by-case decision-making.

The review must address:

• Gastro-intestinal cancers and the individual cancers (i.e. cancers of the esophagus, stomach, small bowel, colon and rectum)
• Individual types of asbestos (i.e. chrysotile, crocidolite, amosite, tremolite, actinolite and anthophyllite) where possible
• Identification of

o   Any dose-response relationships

o   Interdependent causes or synergistic relationships

o   Subgroups of workers who have an increased risk of developing gastrointentinal cancers and/or any of the individual cancers

• Examine any evidence for a minimum interval (latency) between the first exposure to asbestos and the diagnosis of gastrointestinal cancer and/or any of the individual cancers

For more information about the strategic initiative and the application process, please visit our website.To express interest and obtain an application form, please email grants@wsib.on.ca.

Sincerely,