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Prenatal Exposure to PFAS Via Contaminated Drinking Water May Increase Risk of Childhood Cancer, Study Finds
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The cancers linked with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS) exposure included nonastrocytoma gliomas, acute myeloid leukemia, and Wilms tumors.
Research findings published in Environmental Epidemiology, the International Society for Environmental Epidemiology’s official journal, suggest there are associations between prenatal per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS) exposure and certain childhood cancers. Prior studies have investigated associations and speculated this causation, but further research is needed to make this confirmation. Studies regarding PFAS exposures and childhood cancers are sparse, according to the investigators, with other studies finding linked prenatal PFAS exposures to childhood leukemia and retinoblastoma.1
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PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals” because of their persistence in the environment, are widely used in industrial and consumer products, despite their link to various adverse health effects. Between 2013 and 2015, an Environmental Protection Agency monitoring program documented detectable levels of PFAS in California drinking water. These districts were reported in the Third Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule for 2013 through 2015.1,2
Knowing the adverse health effects that PFAS exposure can have on individuals, the investigators specifically evaluated its potential in childhood cancer risk when exposed via drinking water. For this study, the researchers analyzed data from 10,220 children up to age 15 who were diagnosed with cancer between 2000 and 2015, along with 29,974 healthy children. These children were all from California.1
A pharmacokinetic model was used to predict the average steady-state maternal serum concentrations of perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) from contaminated drinking water. Additionally, adjusted odds ratios (AORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) per doubling of background exposure were calculated for cancers with at least 90 cases. The authors determined estimated maternal PFAS levels by linking geocoded addresses at birth to local water district contamination data.1
Predicted PFOS and PFOA maternal serum concentrations ranged from background (5 ng/ml PFOS and 2 ng/ml PFOA) to about 22.89 ng/ml and 6.66 ng/ml, respectively, according to the study authors. There were suggestive associations between PFOS and nonastrocytoma gliomas (n = 268; AOR = 1.26; 95% CI: 0.99, 1.60), acute myeloid leukemia (n = 500; AOR = 1.14; 95% CI: 0.94, 1.39), Wilms tumors (n = 556, AOR = 1.15; 95% CI: 0.96, 1.38), and noncentral system embryonal tumors (n = 2,880; AOR = 1.07; 95% CI: 0.98, 1.17), and between PFOA and non-Hodgkin lymphoma (n = 384; AOR = 1.19; 95% CI: 0.95, 1.49).1
“Our findings indicate suggestive associations between predicted prenatal PFAS exposure and certain childhood cancers, including acute myeloid leukemia and Wilms tumors,” corresponding author Natalie Binczewski, a PhD candidate in environmental health sciences at the University of California, Irvine, said in a news release.2
Interestingly, the investigators observed an increased risk of Wilms tumors (n = 101; AORPFOS = 1.52; 95% CI: 1.06, 2.18; AORPFOA = 1.59, 95% CI: 1.12, 2.24) and noncentral system embryonal tumors (n = 557; AORPFOS = 1.24, 95% CI: 1.03, 1.50; AORPFOA = 1.19, 95% CI: 0.98, 1.45) among children of Mexico-born mothers.1
Additionally, this study is one of the first analyses of childhood cancer risk associated with PFAS exposures via drinking water contamination. These findings, according to the authors, only emphasize the need for clean drinking water.1
“While these results do not confirm that PFAS exposure directly causes childhood cancers, they add to a growing body of evidence highlighting potential health risks. Further studies are needed to confirm and better understand these associations, but this research underscores the importance of clean drinking water and continued regulatory efforts to protect public health,” emphasized Binczewski.2
