Health

Newborns exposed to certain pesticides while in the womb more likely to develop rare eye cancer


One study found that fetuses exposed to pesticides commonly used on citrus and apple trees had an 87% increased risk of developing a rarer eye cancer.

Scientists at the University of California, Los Angeles compared the use of nearly five dozen chemicals on a farm near the home of 335 children under the age of five who developed retinoblastoma with healthy children living with them. state.

They found four chemicals to which children are exposed are more likely to develop cancer, which can permanently change children’s vision, lead to reading and writing problems or lead to blindness.

One of them – acephate – has been banned in Europe. Others are bromacil – should not be used near home -, Pymetrozine and kresoxim-methyl.

The scientists behind the study warn pesticides are especially dangerous for children because their organs are still forming, increasing the risk they can break DNA or inflame cancer-causing cells letters.

They urge farmers to be more aware of the chemicals they are spraying on their fields, and call on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to strengthen regulations on pesticide use.

Research shows that exposure to four chemicals used as pesticides can increase the risk of retinoblastoma, or a rare type of eye cancer (stock image)

Research shows that exposure to four chemicals used as pesticides can increase the risk of retinoblastoma, or a rare type of eye cancer (stock image)

Research shows that exposure to four chemicals used as pesticides can increase the risk of retinoblastoma, or a rare type of eye cancer (stock image)

The American Cancer Society (ACS) says retinoblastoma – a type of eye cancer – can affect one or both eyes and begins when cells begin to grow out of control due to a mutation. gene.

More likely in children under the age of three, symptoms include white or pink pupils, lazy eyes, or early signs of vision problems.

Differentiated people are given radiation therapy or laser therapy to kill cancer cells as well as chemotherapy in certain cases.

But this can leave young people with lifelong vision problems, blindness, and increase the risk of a second cancer later in life.

WHAT IS RETINOBLASTOMA?

Retinoblastoma is a rare type of eye cancer that can affect young children, usually under the age of 5.

Its symptoms include abnormal white reflections in the pupils, crossed eyes, red or inflamed eyes, and poor vision.

Retinoblastoma occurs when cells in the retina of the eye – which are thought to grow very rapidly and then stop growing during a child’s early development – continue to grow and form cancer.

Depends on the size of the tumor. If it is small, laser and cryotherapy treatments aimed at destroying the tumor will be performed.

If they are older, they may need surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation.

Some children may lose sight or have their eyes removed.

Between 40 and 50 cases of retinoblastoma are diagnosed in the UK each year.

This is equivalent to one in 15,000 to 20,000 newborns.

About 4 out of 10 cases are diagnosed in the first year of life, and the incidence drops to very low levels after the age of 5.

About two-thirds of retinoblastomas are diagnosed in only one eye.

More than nine out of 10 cases are detected early and cured before the cancer has spread beyond the eyeball.

Source: NHS, Children with Cancer UK

In their study – published last month in the International Journal of Environmental Hygiene and Health – scientists scoured California’s cancer registry.

They extracted all cases of retinoblastoma diagnosed from 1998, about a decade after the start of the registry, until 2013.

They then collected the addresses of these cases and the addresses of 120,000 healthy children born in the state during the same period. The latter are collected at random.

Next, the scientists collected Pesticide Use Reports on pesticide use around the children’s homes in the months before they were born.

California has required since 1990 that all agricultural pesticide use be centrally reported.

The results showed that children with cancer were more likely to have been exposed to four specific pesticides than healthy children.

People exposed to bromacil – commonly used on citrus trees as well as for lawn mowing – had an 87% higher risk of developing unilateral retinoblastoma or cancer of the eye alone.

Acephate – also used on citrus – increases the risk of this infection by 70%.

But children exposed to kresoxim-methyl – used on apples to control fungus – were 60 percent more likely to develop all types of retinoblastoma, while those exposed to pymetrozine, an aphrodisiac and whitefly in the field – 45% more likely.

The scientists did not look at which concentrations of pesticides had a higher association with cancer.

No association was suggested for the other 54 pesticide chemicals included in the study.

Lead author Dr. Shiraya Thompson, an epidemiologist, urges farmers to be more aware of the potential health risks of the pesticides they use.

She also urged the EPA to consider limiting the use of toxic chemicals to reduce cancer risk.

“You probably have very little control over what’s going on in the cornfields near you,” she said.

‘And you may not even be aware of what farmers near you are putting down.’

The study was observational, meaning it could not determine whether the chemicals that caused its cancer were caused by another factor.

But scientists have warned for years that exposure to pesticides increases the risk of cancers in humans.

Scientists still don’t know what causes retinoblastoma, but the ACS says exposure to chemicals and radiation may increase the risk. Having mothers who eat too few fruits and vegetables can make their chances of getting cancer higher.

Pregnant mothers may have been exposed to chemicals from the farm or through work.

Statistics show that about 6 to 10 percent of rural residents work in the agricultural sector.

Source: | This article originally belonged to Dailymail.co.uk




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