Nearly two dozen pesticides are involved. Increased risk of prostate cancer US researchers reported on November 4. cancer. Four of those were also linked to prostate cancer deaths, according to the study..
John Leppert, a urologist at Stanford University School of Medicine, said the study’s results do not say for certain that these pesticides caused prostate cancer. It is unknown whether the people diagnosed with prostate cancer in Leppert’s data were exposed to pesticides.
“This study is really the best at identifying potential pesticides that could be linked to prostate cancer,” says Leppert. “So we can narrow down the list of things we need to study further.”
Despite being the second most common cancer in the United States, some risk factors for prostate cancer remain elusive.SN: 19/10/16). “The risk of developing prostate cancer or other cancers varies depending on where you live in the United States, and we do not yet have a good explanation for geographic differences,” says Leppert.
Some pesticides are thought to increase prostate cancer risk, but previous research has been patchy. They focus on small geographic areas or just a few pesticides. So Leppert and colleagues looked at data on prostate cancer incidence and use of nearly 300 pesticides in more than 3,100 U.S. counties.
After adjusting for characteristics such as age distribution, counties with greater use of 22 specific pesticides were more likely to develop or die from prostate cancer several years after pesticide use.
The research team analyzed pesticide use and cancer outcomes over two different time periods. The first period focused on pesticide use from 1997 to 2001 and cancer outcomes from 2011 to 2015. The second period looked at pesticide use from 2002 to 2006 and cancer incidence from 2016 to 2020.
Because prostate cancer takes time to develop, a long delay exists between pesticide use and detection of the cancer, Leppert says. Twenty-two pesticides showed an association with prostate cancer in both time periods. These included commonly known pesticides such as 2,4-D, an herbicide often used to treat weeds.
“As clinicians, we understand [environmental exposures] That allows us to be better doctors for our patients,” says Leppert. “We hope that our understanding of a patient’s environment will help us detect prostate cancer earlier and, if necessary, better treat it.”
