Skip to main content

Polybrominated Diphenyl Ether Linked to Increased Risk for Cancer Mortality

Medically reviewed by Carmen Pope, BPharm. Last updated on April 1, 2024.

By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter

MONDAY, April 1, 2024 -- Polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) exposure is associated with an increased risk for cancer mortality, according to a study published online April 1 in JAMA Network Open.

Buyun Liu, M.D., Ph.D., from the University of Science and Technology of China in Hefei, and colleagues conducted a nationally representative cohort study using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2003 to 2004 and linked mortality data through Dec. 31, 2019, to examine the association of environmental exposure to PBDEs with the risk for all-cause and cause-specific mortality. Data were included for 1,100 participants.

The researchers found that 199 deaths occurred during 16,162 person-years of follow-up. The risk for death was higher for participants with higher serum PBDE levels. Participants with the highest compared with the lowest tertile of serum PBDE levels had an approximately 300 percent increased risk for cancer mortality after adjustment for age, sex, race and ethnicity, lifestyle and socioeconomic factors, and body mass index (hazard ratio, 4.09; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.71 to 9.79). There was no significant association observed for PBDE exposure with all-cause or cardiovascular mortality (hazard ratios [95 percent confidence intervals], 1.43 [0.98 to 2.07] and 0.92 [0.41 to 2.08], respectively).

"PBDE exposure was significantly associated with an increased risk of cancer mortality," the authors write. "Further studies are needed to replicate the findings and determine the underlying mechanisms."

Abstract/Full Text

Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2024 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

Read this next

Survival Gains Seen With Assignment to Experimental Group in Cancer Trials

TUESDAY, April 30, 2024 -- For patients with solid tumors, assignment to an experimental group in trials of investigational drugs yields significant survival gains, according to a...

Variation ID'd in Risk for Second Primary Cancer After Breast Cancer

TUESDAY, April 30, 2024 -- The risk for second primary cancer (SPC) after breast cancer (BC) varies with gender, age, and socioeconomic status, according to a study published...

People With Opioid Use Disorder Less Likely to Receive Palliative Care

MONDAY, April 29, 2024 -- People with opioid use disorder (OUD) are less likely to receive palliative care during the last 90 days before death, according to a study published...

More news resources

Subscribe to our newsletter

Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.