NH Science and Public Health published critical study that found an elevated risk of 4 cancers in Merrimack, NH, a community exposed to PFAS industrial pollution

PORTSMOUTH, N.H., Feb. 22, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- NH Science and Public Health Co-Founders study, "Risk of Cancer in a Community Exposed to Per- and Poly-Fluoroalkyl Substances," published in Environmental Health Insights.

The study found that Merrimack residents, a community with documented per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)-contaminated water supplies, experienced a significantly higher risk of at least four types of cancer compared to US incidence rates or demographically similar New England towns with no documented PFAS contamination in the drinking water supply.

The study also found that Merrimack residents may experience a similar risk for female breast, prostate, and thyroid cancer compared to Bennington, VT, another community exposed to PFAS emissions from Saint Gobain Performance Plastics.

The novel ecological study highlights the need to carefully select comparator groups to adequately characterize the public health impact of PFAS exposure. In addition, it is imperative to prevent environmental exposure while constructing studies that are responsive to community concerns. Finally, the study concluded that additional is necessary to assess elevated risk of cancer in New Hampshire.

Dr. Linda Birnbaum, Ph.D., D.A.B.T., A.T.S., Former Director National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and National Toxicology Program, said:

"What is so clear in this analysis is that the comparison population is absolutely key to understanding whether PFAS are associated with cancer. If the comparison group has the same exposure, or even higher, the impact of PFAS could be missed." 

Attorney Robert Bilott, who led the class-action litigation relating to a DuPont plant in West Virginia, said:

"It's infuriating that the more these PFAS manufacturers contaminate the planet, the more difficult it is to do effective human health studies, as there are fewer and fewer 'uncontaminated' populations to compare to. It's as if the more people they contaminate, the harder it is for those of us exposed to prove the harm from that exposure."

Dr. Joseph J. Drabick, MD, FACP, Division Chief for Hematology-Oncology, Penn State Cancer Institute, Department of Medicine, said:

"It takes good, old-fashioned epidemiologic risk assessment analysis with suitable controls to seek out potential links to potential culprits as the first step to ascribe causality. This work is critical in protecting people from one class of environmental hazards."

Access the complete study here.

SOURCE NH Science and Public Health