Chemicals in weedkiller could be causing the rise in prostate cancer as cases increase among younger men
More than a dozen chemicals used in commonly used herbicides may increase the risk of prostate cancer, alarming research shows.
Tests on almost 300 pesticides showed that 22 had a ‘direct’ link to the disease, four of which increased the risk of death.
One of these is the main ingredient in the popular spray Roundup, which was also blamed for causing blood cancer in an American man earlier this year.
However, only a handful of the 22 identified are currently legal in Britain.
US researchers said the study showed how important the environment was as a risk factor for the disease, which kills more than 11,500 men in Britain every year.
But they acknowledged that the paper was purely observational and could not prove causality.
Dr. Simon John Christoph Soerensen, lead author of the study and an expert on prostate cancer at Stanford University, said his research may explain some of the “geographic variation” in prostate cancer incidence and deaths in the United States.
‘By building on these findings we can work to reduce the number of men affected by this disease.’
Tests of almost 300 pesticides found that 22 pesticides had a ‘direct’ link to the disease, four of which increased the risk of death
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are more than 1,000 different pesticides used worldwide.
They are used in agriculture to control weeds, insect pests and disease carriers such as mosquitoes, ticks, rats and mice. They also allow farmers to protect the quantity and quality of crops.
Some are also used to make products purchased by gardeners to protect their crops at home, such as RoundUp.
Pesticide consumption has increased by almost 60 percent since 1990 and will reach 2.66 billion kg (5.86 billion lbs) in 2020.
But the elderly, children and unborn babies are especially sensitive to the harmful effects of pesticides.
In the study, researchers reviewed data on the annual estimated use of the 295 pesticides between 1997 and 2001.
They then compared it to prostate cancer diagnoses and deaths between 2011 and 2015, to account for the slow-growing nature of most prostate cancers.
The same was done for pesticide use between 2002 and 2006 and prostate cancer outcomes between 2016 and 2020.
On average, over 52,000 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer in the UK every year, making it the most common form of cancer in men
Writing in the diary Cancerthe researchers said that 19 of the 22 pesticides linked to prostate cancer had never before been linked to the disease.
But only eight of these 22 are currently approved for use in Britain.
This included the agricultural weed killer 2,4-dichloroacetic acid, better known as 2,4-D.
Animal studies have shown that exposure to it during pregnancy is associated with lower body weight and changes in the behavior of the offspring.
Other research has shown an increased association with lymphoma, and long-term exposure can lead to kidney and liver damage.
As another example, glyphosate – the main ingredient in Roundup – is also a known endocrine disruptor, which can disrupt endocrine systems.
Endocrine disruptors have also been linked to a range of health problems, including birth defects and developmental disorders.
Glyphosate is found in the UK in Roundup’s ‘Fast Action Ready to Use’ weedkiller and ‘Ready to Use Path weedkiller’.
The makers of Roundup – Monsanto and its owner Bayer AG – have repeatedly assured the public that their product is safe and poses no threat to human health
This CRUK graph shows the incidence of prostate cancer over time among different age groups, with older men still most likely to develop the disease, while disease rates among younger men have increased dramatically since the 1990s.
Are However, its makers – Monsanto and its owner Bayer AG – have repeatedly assured the public that their product is safe and poses no threat to human health.
However, earlier this year, 49-year-old Pennsylvania gardener John McKivison won a multi-billion dollar lawsuit against Bayer after he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2020, which he and lawyers successfully argued was resulted from the use of Roundup for two people. decades.
According to the researchers, four of the 22 pesticides were also linked to prostate cancer deaths.
Although available in the US, none of the four – trifluralin, cloransulam-methyl, thiamethoxam and diflufenzopyr – are used legally in Britain.
One in eight men will develop prostate cancer at some point in their lives, charities say. More than 52,000 men are diagnosed in Britain every year.
But thousands are diagnosed once the disease has already spread, making it the most common cause of cancer death in men after lung cancer.
Experts agree that early detection is key to increasing survival rates.
Unlike other forms of cancer – which are very difficult to diagnose at an early stage – prostate cancer has a relatively effective screening method.
PSA tests check for high levels of a protein that indicates the prostate is not functioning properly.
The risk of prostate cancer increases with age, with most cases diagnosed in men aged 50 or over, the NHS says.
A high PSA score is not always a sign of cancer; it can also be caused by an enlarged prostate, an infection, sexual activity or even cycling.
However, patients with high results are usually sent for scans to determine the cause.
But the majority of men under 50 don’t get their PSA tested unless they have symptoms.
Charities have been calling for this rule to change for years – especially for men with underlying risk factors.
Symptoms of the disease include increased urination, waiting longer to urinate, erectile dysfunction, blood in the urine, weight loss, or new and unexplained lower back pain.