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Over 20 agrochemicals, including common herbicides, linked to prostate cancer
By Douglas Main
New research adds to evidence that several types of agrochemicals — including the widely used herbicides 2,4-D and glyphosate — may raise the risk of prostate cancer.
A study published November 4 in the journal Cancer examined the relationship between the quantity of pesticides used in US counties over certain spans of time and then the rates of prostate cancer 14 years later. Nearly two dozen of these chemicals were consistently associated with an elevated risk of the disease, which is the most common cancer in men, and is considered the second-most deadly.
The results suggest more research is urgently needed to further understand the role these chemicals may play in the development of this and other cancers, the authors wrote.
“Many pesticides have not been sufficiently studied for their potential carcinogenic effects, particularly in relation to prostate cancer,” said study co-author Simon Soerensen, a postdoctoral researcher at Stanford University.
The findings add to concerns about the health impacts of chronic exposure to pesticides, and are merely the latest in years of research to link chemicals used in farming with different cancers and other diseases.
The World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies 2,4-D as “possibly” carcinogenic to humans, for instance. And six other chemicals looked at in the study are currently classified as “potential human carcinogens” by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The EPA classifies the herbicide diuron in particular, as a known/likely carcinogen.
