Deodorants and breast cancer: it's not that simple
Parabens remaining under suspicion of carcinogenic action were found in the tissues of mammary gland tumors of women who did not use axillary deodorants
A number of studies conducted in the period after 1998 raised the question of the possible participation of parabens (esters of para hydroxy benzoic acid) in the formation of breast cancer. The fact is that the compounds of this group, used as preservatives in the production of deodorants, cosmetics, body lotions, moisturizers and other cosmetic products, are similar in molecular structure to the female sex hormone estrogen, which plays a key role in the development, growth and progression of breast cancer.
In particular, it was suggested that the highest frequency of the formation of malignant tumors in the upper outer quarter of the breast is the result of local application of deodorants in the armpits. However, the results of the latest study showed that everything is not so simple.
As part of the work carried out by scientists working under the guidance of Dr. Philippe Darbre from the University of Reading and Lester Barr from the University Hospital of South Manchester, 160 samples of breast tissue from 40 women who underwent removal of malignant breast tumors between 2005 and 2008 were analyzed. In each woman, tissue samples were isolated from four locations sequentially located between the armpit and the sternum. 99% of the analyzed samples contained at least one paraben, while 60% of the samples revealed five representatives of this group of compounds.
The highest levels of n-propylparaben were indeed characteristic of the samples of the upper outer quarter of the breast that were particularly susceptible to malignant growth, and the remaining four compounds analyzed (methylparaben, n-butylparaben, ethylparaben and isobutylparaben) they were evenly distributed in the tissues of the mammary glands. Moreover, it turned out that parabens are detected even in the tissues of the mammary glands of women who completely deny the use of underarm deodorants.
The fact that parabens were detected in most of the analyzed breast tissue samples cannot be considered proof of the causal role of parabens in the development of the disease in all 40 women. However, the fact of the presence of these compounds in the vast majority of breast tissue samples requires further careful study.
Article by L. Barr et al. A measurement of paraben concentrations in human breast tissue at serial locations across the breast from axilla to sternum is published in the Journal of Applied Toxicology.
Evgeniya Ryabtseva
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru based on Wiley-Blackwell: Parabens in Breast Tissue not Limited to Women who Have Used Underarm Products.16.01.2012