Cancer has become a serious and very common illness among the crowd nowadays. About 40 years ago, I guess we barely heard that someone is suffering from cancer. But these days, almost 4-5 people out of 10 are fighting cancer. As per the ICMR data in India, cancer patients among women are more compared to men in India. In 2022, there were 14,61,427 active cancer patients were recorded, among which 7,49,251 are women and 7,12,176 are men. These glaring numbers are clearly saying that we are not safe and not leading a healthy life. So in today’s blog, I will be sharing about 10 cancer-causing chemicals
1. Benzene
American Cancer Society says that consumption of benzene in any form can change the chromosome in the human bone marrow cells. It’s very common in human leukaemia cells. In the late 1920s, it was found that benzene is a cancer-causing chemical. It also disturbs the actual growth of the new blood cells.
2. Asbestos
IARC (International Agency for Research on Cancer) found that asbestos causes mesothelioma, which is regarded as the formation of a thin membrane of rare cancer in the chest and abdomen. It generally impacts the lungs, larynx and ovaries in women. In maximum cases, researchers found that mesothelioma is found in people who are exposed to asbestos.
3. Formaldehyde
It is mainly found in wallpapers, wall paints, foam insulation and in some specific cosmetics. Recently, a study was conducted on a group of construction and interior workers and it was concluded that exposure to Formaldehyde has changed their chromosomes. It changes the initial white blood cells and a direct link between leukaemia and Formaldehyde exposure can be found.
4. Arsenic
Many of you might not be knowing that arsenic can be found in soil sediments and groundwater. Organic form of arsenic is also found in fish and shellfish. So the fish lovers need to be very careful while devouring fish on their plates. The humans have a complicated DNA mechanisms and continuous arsenic consumption can disturb the repairing process of DNA. Epidemiological data (study conducted on the patients to see how the diseases are impacting differently), also showed that exposure to inorganic arsenic can cause skin and lung cancer pretty easily.
5. Vinyl chloride
Vinyl chloride is mainly found in air, specially in the industrial areas where the air is contaminated and people inhale it in air. It is so dangerous that it directly impacts the liver and lungs. It can cause hepatic angiosarcoma (liver cancer), lung cancer and lymphoma. National Cancer Institute says that it is a colourless gas which can be burnt pretty easily and is used to make the PVC pipes in the industrial regions. PVC itself is considered as a carcinogen agent.
6. Nitrosamines
In a study published in Science Direct in 2014, it was mentioned that its an agent used in cured meat, processed food, cocoa and in various alcoholic beverages. Some brands mention nitrosamines in their ingredient list for making pickles and spiced packaged food. Though it is not a direct carcinogen agent, but it produces lot of genotoxic chemical carcinogens which is being transferred into humans through food. At times, it causes IBS and various other digesting issues which later on leads to cancer.
7. Cadmium
Cadmium is another cancer causing chemical which gets transferred into our body through smoking cigarettes, metal and plastic coatings. It can also percolate into soil and rocks through mining operations. Its also an action of rain and wind. It interferes with the protein solution in our body which arises DNA damage, that hampers the cell growth. National Library of Medicine opined that, cadmium targets the protein along with zinc-binding structures in our body.
8. Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)
The United States Environmental Protection Energy says people get easily impacted with PCB who use it commercially. It is broadly used as an oil component in motors and hydraulic systems, various electrical equipment, thermal insulation like corks and fibreglass, etc. NIH found that PCB attacks the immune, nervous, endocrine and reproductive system and in the long term it leads to cancer. It’s a probable carcinogenic agent to humans.
9.Benzidine
It is a chemical composition mainly produced and widely used in cloth, leather and paper dyeing process. It is also used in the clinical labs to detect blood as a rubber-compounding agent. Workers who are exposed to benzidine for a longer period of time are found to be fighting bladder cancer. In animals, benzidine caused tumours in various organs. At times, the numbers of tumours are so tiny that its hard to detect and it grows pretty rapidly.
10 Dioxins
Dioxins are mainly found in the environment and are widely found in meat, dairy products, fish and shellfish. It is also found in air, water and plants but the composition is too low. Long term exposure to dioxin can deeply impact the immune system. It can also disrupt our central nervous system. WHO also found that dioxin can affect reproductive system and endocrine system too. In animals also dioxin is quite dangerous and causes cancer among them too.
I’m sure, many of us were not aware of these cancer causing chemicals. But they do exist and impact the entire human body. In many medical organisations, these researches were conducted on the animals to detect the long term effects. Few researches were conducted on humans, who have already been exposed to these chemicals based on their profession.