Ethylene Oxide
CATEGORY: IARC known, NTP known
USED IN: Cosmetics, also used to sterilize surgical instruments
Ethylene oxide is a fumigant used to sterilize surgical instruments and is also used in some cosmetic products (ASTDR, 1999). Ethylene oxide is classified as a known human carcinogen (NTP, 2005b) and one of 221 chemicals identified by researchers at the Silent Spring Institute as being associated with mammary tumors in animals (Rudel, 2007).
Scientists from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) studied breast cancer incidence in 7,576 women exposed to ethylene oxide while working in commercial sterilization facilities. They found an increased incidence of breast cancer among these women in direct proportion to their cumulative exposure to ethylene oxide (Steenland, 2003). Although there are contradictory data in the recent literature, several other reports support the finding that exposure to ethylene oxide is associated with increased risk for breast cancer in women (Adam, 2005).
Studies in which human breast cells grown in vitro were exposed to low doses of ethylene oxide demonstrated that the chemical exposure resulted in a significant increase in damage to the cells’ DNA (Adam, 2005).
