Breast Cancer: DDT Exposure During Pregnancy Increases Breast Cancer Risk

New findings published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism elaborate on the dangers of pesticide dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) and breast cancer risk. Though the chemical was banned in the United States nearly 42 years ago, scientists are still examining its connection to human health.

Many U.S. women alive today were exposed to the pesticide when it was widely used in the 1960s, which is known to interfere with the function of the hormone estrogen and has been linked to both birth defects and fertility problems, as well as Type 2 diabetes.

For this study in particular, researchers looked at 20,754 pregnancies among women who belonged to the Kaiser Foundation Health Plan from 1959 through 1967 and followed 9,300 daughters of the women for 54 years. They analyzed levels of DDT exposure in utero, examining blood samples taken from the mothers during pregnancy and immediately following delivery.

Findings revealed a nearly four-fold increase in breast cancer risk by age 52 when compared to controls who were also matched for a variety of factors, including maternal history of breast cancer.

"This study calls for a new emphasis on finding and controlling environmental causes of breast cancer that operate in the womb," lead study author Barbara A. Cohn of the Public Health Institute, in a news release. "Our findings should prompt additional clinical and laboratory studies that can lead to prevention, early detection and treatment of DDT-associated breast cancer in the many generations of women who were exposed in the womb. We also are continuing to research other chemicals to see which may impact breast cancer risk among our study participants."

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