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Blog

Post category: cancer

Aug 13
2024

What’s new
Zero Breast Cancer joins CHE

Kristin Schafer, MA
Director, Collaborative for Health & Environment

We’re pleased to announce that Zero Breast Cancer (ZBC) is now a project of the Collaborative for Health and Environment (CHE). This new partnership is rooted in our shared commitment to translating science into action in the service of health — and we’re very excited to move this work forward together.  . . .

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Jul 12
2024

What’s new
Cancer in Young Adults: The role of the food system

Kristen Kim, MPH candidate
Science Communications Intern

According to the American Cancer Society, about 80,000 adults aged 20-39 are now diagnosed with cancer every year, with the most common types being breast cancer, lymphomas, thyroid cancer, colorectal cancer, and brain and spinal cord tumors. This number has been on the rise in recent years, sparking public health concerns and raising questions about the drivers of the upward trend. The potential contribution of the food system – from food packaging and agricultural chemicals to diet and nutrition – is a key area that cannot be ignored.   . . .

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Jul 9
2024

Guest commentary
What’s new
Attacks on Scientists: Lessons from the Monsanto papers

Stacy Malkan
Co-founder and Managing Editor, U.S. Right to Know

In the documentary film Merchants of Doubt, Marc Morano, a former staffer for Senator James Inhofe (R-OK), described working to thwart action on climate by attacking the scientists speaking out about the crisis. “You’ve got to name names and you’ve got to go after individuals,” Moreno said. He describes how they “went after” climate scientists James Hansen and Michael Oppenheimer – “and we had a lot of fun with it,” he adds.  . . .

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Jun 7
2024

What’s new
Meeting cancer together, with tender fierceness

Kristin Schafer, MA
Director, Collaborative for Health & Environment

Too many of our lives are touched by cancer. I’ve lost several people to this terrible disease, including my mother, an uncle and one of my dearest friends. This is one of the reasons I’ve devoted my career to shining a light on environmental drivers of cancer, and what can be done about them.  . . .

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Apr 17
2024

Guest commentary
What’s new
On the Brink of Ink: The impact of tattoos and their safety

Andre Green, MSW
Network Coordinator, Cancer and Environment Network of Southwestern Pennsylvania

Tattoos have been a cornerstone in human expression for thousands of years. From an ancient iceman whose remains were found with tattoos across his body, to modern day tattoo conventions, this art form has transcended its ancient roots and is now a common form of expression.  . . .

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Dec 13
2023

What’s new
Webinars
PFAS and Testicular Cancer: A study of U.S. Air Force servicemen

A recent study investigated serum PFAS concentrations and their associations with testicular cancer risk among Air Force servicemen. Dr. Mark Purdue presented findings from the study in an EDC Strategies Partnership webinar.  . . .

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Nov 19
2023

What’s new
PFAS, phenols, and parabens: Links to hormone-mediated cancers

In a recent webinar, Dr. Max Aung presented the results of a study that examined the relationship between certain chemicals and previous diagnoses of hormone-mediated cancers.  . . .

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Jul 22
2023

What’s new
Webinars
Reducing breast cancer risk by reducing chemical exposures

Personal care products (PCPs) such as shampoo, deodorant, and fragrance often contain xenoestrogens. Xenoestrogens are industrial chemicals, such as parabens and phthalates, which have estrogenic activity. Estrogenic overstimulation can be carcinogenic in human breast tissue.
 . . .

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Oct 20
2022

What’s new
Cancer and Chemicals

Margaret Kripke, PhD
Professor Emerita, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences

 

Like most cancer researchers, I was initially quite skeptical of the importance of environmental factors in causing cancer. But several years ago, the President’s Cancer Panel, of which I was a member, did a year-long study of this issue, which dramatically changed my outlook.  . . .

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Oct 30
2017

Guest commentary
Environmental Carcinogens: Are You at Risk for Mesothelioma?

Guest Post by Mesothelioma + Asbestos Awareness Center

Tremendous strides have been made in the medical field within the past century, yet carcinogens and pollutants still pose a very serious threat to health. While treatments progress and greatly affect patients’ prognoses, there has been no definite preventive measure for many types of cancer. According to the World Health Organization, 1 in 6 deaths globally can be attributed to cancer. Risk factors can come in the form of genetics, lifestyle choices such as the lack of exercise, poor diet or smoking, and environmental hazards, which can greatly influence one’s susceptibility to cancer. However, certain naturally occurring substances can also cause serious illness and rare disease in humans- perhaps the most dangerous is the relation between asbestos and mesothelioma, an uncommon and severe cancer.   . . .

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Oct 26
2017

What’s new
Just released! Protecting Children’s Health Where They Live, Learn, and Play.

CHE

This report from the NIEHS/EPA Children’s Environmental Health and Disease Prevention Centers highlights some of the important contributions the centers have made toward reducing the burden of environmentally induced or exacerbated diseases placed on children. The report provides examples of success in the community and in support of public health. It is organized in three section:

  • Health outcomes, presenting scientific findings from the Children’s Centers on diseases that sometimes affect children
  • Environmental exposures, presenting research findings on chemicals and pollutants children are commonly exposed to through air, water and food. 
  • Hallmark features, highlighting the unique features that have facilitated the work of the Children’s Centers and advancements in the field. 

Read the full Children's Centers impact report.

Oct 19
2017

Webinars
Meet our 20 Pioneers under 40 in Environmental Public Health: Todd Whitehead, PhD

We wanted to find the best young researchers and advocates who might change the future of environmental health. So, we asked a panel of luminaries in environmental health to nominate rising stars who are doing pioneering work. After a rigorous selection process, we invited 20 of these nominees to be our 20 Pioneers under 40 in Environmental Public Health.

This month, we held our first webinar in the series. In addition to these presentations, we got to sit down and learn a little bit more about the researchers. While we did talk about their research, we also learned how they first got interested in the field and what this work means to them, plus a few tips for staying healthy.


Todd Whitehead, PhD, works at the Center for Integrative Research on Childhood Leukemia and the Environment (CIRCLE) at the University of California, Berkeley. He initially got involved in this work by looking at flame-retardants in consumer products.  . . .

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Feb 15
2017

Guest commentary
What’s new
A Case Study: Tapping the Bioinitiative Website

Cindy Sage, MA
Owner of Sage Associates, Full Member of the Bioelectromagnetics Society, Co-author of the Bioinitiative Report and CHE Partner

This post will introduce our readers to the BioInitiative website, which makes publications on electromagnetic fields (EMF) and radiofrequency radiation (RF) on health topics accessible. The information is set up to allow users to integrate the EMF and RF information on health into their own practices. I hope other CHE groups will begin to consider how EMF and RF studies, along with other important environmental contaminants, can shape our views on the etiologies of breast cancer, brain cancers, heart disease, neurological diseases, cognitive and neurodevelopmental problems like autism and ADHD, and the fundamental mechanisms involved.

Bioinitiative logoThe Bioinitiative provides broad information the science and public health consequences of EMF and wireless technologies. This website offers an opportunity for CHE members to access many hundreds of scientific abstracts on EMF and RF. The Research Summaries can be downloaded and word-searched by topic or keyword ("hippocampus", for example). The ability to quickly access scientific publications reporting effects (or no effects) is a vital part of research and education. This collection offers rapid access to decision-makers and the public on the state of the evidence for EMF and RF effects on human health. It can help researchers identify common pathways, mechanisms and biomarkers that may overlap with chemical and ionizing radiation, and studies of various disease endpoints (cancers, neurological diseases, neurodevelopmental problems and more).

A CHE ScienceServ that I follow recently included a post regarding a new study of hippocampal activation, increased amyloid accumulation and cognitive decline.Leal SL et al. Hippocampal activation is associated with longitudinal amyloid accumulation and cognitive decline. eLife. 2017. I was able to search the Bioinitiative website for studies on effects of radiofrequency and microwave radiation on the hippocampus and found 44 studies reporting effects on the hippocampus from exposure to radiofrequency radiation, primarily in the cell phone and Wi-Fi frequency ranges. RF/microwave exposures are clearly biologically active in the hippocampus at exposure levels below current safety limits. Such exposures are reported to cause changes in development, structure and function of the hippocampus.

The studies I located provide readers a sense of the scope of information available on the Bioinitiative website:

Dec 5
2016

What’s new
San Francisco Cancer Initiative Launched

CHE

Launched on 11/16. The San Francisco Cancer Initiative is a major public health initiative in San Francisco focused on reducing cancer mortality, the city’s leading cause of death. This initiative is a partnership between the University of San Francisco (UCSF), the City and County of San Francisco, the San Francisco Department of Public Health, health care providers and various community organizations. Learn more by visiting the UCSF announcement or listen to Dr. Robert Hiatt describe this initiative on our recent CHE Partnership call.   . . .

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