Home
Newsletter
Events
Blogs
Reports
Graphics
RSS
About Us
Support
Write for Us
Media Info
Advertising Info
Health news

Cadmium linked to breast cancer (press release)

Friday, August 25, 2006 by: NewsTarget
Tags: health news, Natural News, nutrition


Most Viewed Articles
https://www.naturalnews.com/020158_cancer_cadmium_breast.html
Delicious
diaspora
Print
Email
Share

Women with the highest levels of cadmium in their urine have more than a two-fold higher risk of breast cancer than women with the lowest levels, according to a new study. However, further studies are needed to determine if these elevated levels are a cause or effect of breast cancer.

Although cadmium, a heavy metal, has been classified as a probable cancer-causing substance by the US Environmental Protection Agency, until now no human studies have investigated its link with breast cancer, Dr. Jane A. McElroy told Reuters Health.

The findings from "animal studies have supported an association, and cadmium has been found in breast tissue," noted the researcher, from the University of Wisconsin Comprehensive Cancer Center in Madison.

McElroy and her team compared urinary levels of cadmium in 246 breast cancer patients and in 254 age-matched controls. The subjects were contacted by telephone to determine the presence of known breast cancer risk factors.

In the study, reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, women with cadmium levels above a certain cut-off were 2.29-times more likely to have breast cancer than those with lower levels. This held true after accounting for established risk factors.

Exactly how cadmium might cause breast cancer is unclear, but there is evidence that it mimics the effects of estrogen. "It actually competes with estrogen for the alpha receptor site," McElroy said.

McElroy believes that if the current findings are replicated in a larger study and cadmium's role is confirmed, it could lead to tighter restrictions on how the heavy metal is disposed of in the environment.


Receive Our Free Email Newsletter

Get independent news alerts on natural cures, food lab tests, cannabis medicine, science, robotics, drones, privacy and more.


comments powered by Disqus



Natural News Wire (Sponsored Content)

Science.News
Science News & Studies
Medicine.News
Medicine News and Information
Food.News
Food News & Studies
Health.News
Health News & Studies
Herbs.News
Herbs News & Information
Pollution.News
Pollution News & Studies
Cancer.News
Cancer News & Studies
Climate.News
Climate News & Studies
Survival.News
Survival News & Information
Gear.News
Gear News & Information
Glitch.News
News covering technology, stocks, hackers, and more