The key facts

  • High plasma levels of PFOA and PFOS are associated with the risk of ER-negative breast cancer: +67% and +93% relative risk, respectively
  • No association with overall breast cancer incidence was found
  • The observational design does not prove causality

What the study is about

Researchers at the US National Institutes of Health have obtained a result indicating a link between two According to Gazeta.Ru, high concentrations of PFOA and PFOS in the blood are associated with a higher likelihood of tumors lacking estrogen receptors — a subtype that often follows a more aggressive course. The work was published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

How the analysis was conducted

PFAS are called

Results and their limitations

When comparing the groups with the highest and lowest PFOA levels, the relative risk of ER-negative tumors was 67% higher, and for PFOS it was 93% higher. The researchers did not find a clear link between these substances and overall breast cancer incidence, meaning the result concerns a specific subtype rather than all breast tumors. Importantly, the percentages cited reflect relative differences between groups, not the probability of disease for an individual woman.

What remains unclear

The authors and the publication emphasize the limitations: the observational design does not prove causality, and the applicability of the result to women without a family history of breast cancer requires further verification. Separately, Gazeta.Ru mentions an earlier news item in which scientists found an unexpected weakness of cancer cells, — that report is not related to this PFAS study.