As mentioned in Lecture 3, toxicity assessment, exposure assessment, and risk characterization are now the three subprocesses involved in the revised RA scheme. In either case, epidemiologic studies by far provide the most relevant evidence for hazard identification. This strength is offset to a great extent, however, by the difficulties associated with obtaining and interpreting epidemiologic information since such is derived from observational studies.
Epidemiology involves the association of diseases to risk factors and human exposures.
The use of biomarkers in epidemiologic studies has now become a popular assessment tool. In the last part of this lecture, students will learn how and why biomarkers can be used to extend our understanding of the steps between exposure and disease occurrence, and about the limitations of this use.