A farmer in Iowa complains of an unusual mole on his forearm. Down the
road, another farmer complains of itchy skin. Another worker in the field
says she just doesn't have the energy to do her job. Is there any connection
between their current state of health and the work these farmers are doing?
Leon Burmeister, a biostatistician in Iowa, wants to find out. "We found
out that there was a relatively high rate of certain types of cancers in farmers,"
he says. "We don't know for sure what the reasons could be."
Burmeister set out to design experiments and analyze data to see what could
be making the farmers sick. "Various insecticides are used on the fields and
on animals, and that could be affecting the farmers' health," he says.
Many farmers understand that getting a toxic pesticide directly on their
skin isn't a good idea. But what about the farmers who take precautions and
are still getting sick? Burmeister is currently evaluating the effectiveness
of protective clothing and breathing devices when using pesticides.
It sounds like pesticides might be a problem, but Burmeister can't jump
to any conclusions. "One of the prevalent cancers is prostate cancer," he
says. "And you can't easily see a connection. This might have a dietary factor
to it."
Burmeister is also involved in studying how farm machinery may affect farmers'
health. "We are worried about potential injuries in the population," he says.
Biostatisticians have an opportunity to have a real impact on the future
health of a population. "You are right on the edge of innovation," says Bertrand
Clarke, director of biostatistics at a university. "I'd say you are so close
to that cutting edge that you will get sprayed with blood.
"What biostatisticians can look at is so new and different," he adds. "It's
a very exciting place to be."
Whether you are considering whether life can be sustained in a test tube
or looking at different effects of pollution on asthma sufferers, biostatisticians
are always challenged.
Currently, Clarke's department is researching medical treatments of glaucoma.
Glaucoma is a condition where fluids in the eye distort vision. "A medication
was given as standard practice for years and years and years," says Clarke.
But research shows that in a majority of cases, the medication had no positive
effect.
"It's a warning that just because something is written in a book doesn't
mean that it's any good," says Clarke.
Findings such as this have a real impact on people's health. Findings in
other studies can have an impact on people's health in the future. Biostatistician
Sarah Fowler is involved in a bone density study.
She wants to know if changing people's lifestyles can prevent a debilitating
disease called osteoporosis. People who have osteoporosis have weak, brittle
bones that fracture easily and cause a great deal of pain. "Bone density is
such an important issue and needs looking into," says Fowler.
She designed an experiment to do this. "You recruit volunteers and randomly
assign them to one of two groups," says Fowler. "Some are put in a group that
will exercise, and the others won't.
"The difficult part is to get the subjects to exercise," she says. "Often,
the people side of every experiment is the most difficult part to control."
Working with test subjects, other researchers and physicians can be a challenge.
"You need to be able to work with people, and also be able to get people
to understand the research you have done and what the results mean," she says.
Biostatisticians also spend much of their time in front of computers crunching
numbers. "We work with computers a lot to analyze data and to summarize research,"
says Fowler. "You have to enjoy working on computers, and you have to like
math."
The results from a biostatistics research project can have a real and lasting
impact on the health of the population. "I feel we're making a real contribution
to health," says Fowler. "Depending on the effects in the future, the results
could mean a lot for many people."
Clarke agrees that the studies have a real impact on people's lives. "The
age profile is increasing in this country. People are more and more concerned
about their health," he says. "What nuclear physics is to the '40s, biotechnology
is now. Everyone wants to know how they can live longer."
Whether working on glaucoma, osteoporosis or the effects of pesticides
on farmers, biostatisticians work to keep the population healthy. "Biostatistics
certainly has a social impact," agrees Burmeister. "There's no doubt about
that."