A study published in the Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology found that women with higher levels of forever chemicals had a greater risk of developing breast, ovary, skin, and uterus cancer.
Forever chemicals may be present in furniture, cosmetics, cookware, and other household items.
Women exposed to PFDE (per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances) were likely to have had a previous melanoma diagnosis.
Such a connection was not seen in men.
The study found that some cancers associated with forever chemicals affect different races.
The connection between PFAS and ovarian and uterine cancers was primarily observed among white women, whereas “MPAH or BPF was associated with previous breast cancer among non-White women,” the study notes.
“Future work in prospective cancer studies should aim to explore the roles of estrogenic chemicals and estrogen disruption in the pathology of melanoma and ovarian cancer and consider racial disparities when evaluating cancer mechanisms and risk,” the study concluded.
“Findings from this study can be used to help inform and prioritize toxicants for policies surrounding greater surveillance of chemical exposures and risk assessment in communities with existing or emerging risk of environmental contamination.”
Reporting from The National Pulse:
“People should care about this because we know that there is widespread human exposure to these chemicals and we have documented data on that,” stated assistant professor of environmental health at the USA Kreck School of Medicine Max Aung. “These chemicals can increase the risk of various different health outcomes and they can alter your biological pathways … That is important to know so that we can better prevent exposures and mitigate risks,” Professor Aung added.
