Organochlorine Pesticide Content of Breast Adipose Tissue From Women With Breast Cancer and Control Subjects

Extract

The suggestion that organochlorine compounds used as pesticides may be related to environment-induced breast cancer has been based on several observations. DDT [2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)-1,1,1-trichloroethane], its metabolite DDE [1,1-dichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethylene], similar pesticides, and related chemicals (PCBs [polychlorinated biphenyls] and PBBs [polybrominated biphenyls]) are known animal carcinogens (1,2). Both DDT and PCBs have been shown to be tumor promoters (2) and to have estrogenic activity (3). It is important to note that some studies (4–6) have suggested that organochlorines may inhibit rather than promote tumor growth and may even have antiestrogenic effects. Organochlorines have become ubiquitous in the environment and in human tissues because of their long half-life in the environment, their inefficient metabolism, and their high solubility in lipids, which leads to long-term sequestration in adipose tissues. However, since the use of DDT has been banned in the United States since 1972, the total-body burden of DDT and of its metabolites in the population has fallen with time.