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Proven or suspected kidney toxins (nephrotoxins) include arsenic, beryllium, lead, cadmium, mercury and uranium plus their compounds, solvents, and pesticides. Kidney failure from exposure to lead was common earlier this century, and kidney disease is the best known effect of chronic exposure to cadmium.

The kidneys, via urine, are the major route by which toxic chemicals are excreted from the body. Because of this, and the way the kidneys do their job, they are vulnerable to the toxic effects of chemicals. The damage caused is complicated, and in many cases still not well understood, but can result from acute and chronic exposure.

According to the US National Bladder Cancer Study, up to a quarter of bladder cancers are caused by work. Aromatic amines are one group of chemicals known to cause bladder cancer. Occupationally-induced bladder cancer was first reported in 1895 in German dye-manufacturing workers. Because they use dyes, jobs where workers are at risk of developing bladder cancer include textile, fur and leather dyeing as well as aromatic amine manufacturing. Aromatic amines are also used in rubber and plastics manufacture. Even though bladder cancer usually takes around 20 years to develop after exposure to aromatic amines, this can range from 4-40 years, and can result from exposures as short as 19 weeks (Levy and Wegman).

MbOCA is one aromatic amine used as a stabiliser in plastics manufacturing, often by small manufacturing plants. After an HSE national enforcement project in 1996-97, the HSE described conditions in many of these workplaces as "rough and ready." MbOCA is easily absorbed through the skin, and in many of these small factories even the eating areas and maintenance workers' tools were contaminated (M Piney et al., MbOCA - Toxicology, exposure and control, Occupational Hygiene '98 abstracts, BOHS, 1998)

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