Prospective association between dietary pesticide exposure profiles and postmenopausal breast-cancer risk in the NutriNet-Santé cohort

Abstract

Background Some pesticides, used in large quantities in current agricultural practices all over Europe, are suspected of adverse effects on human reproductive health (breast and prostate cancers), through mechanisms of endocrine disruption and possible carcinogenic properties, as observed in agricultural settings. However, evidence on dietary pesticide exposure and breast cancer (BC) is lacking for the general population. We aimed to assess the associations between dietary exposure to pesticides and BC risk among postmenopausal women of the NutriNet-Santé cohort. Methods In 2014, participants completed a self-administered semi-quantitative food-frequency questionnaire distinguishing conventional and organic foods. Exposures to 25 active substances used in EU plant-protection products were estimated using a pesticide-residue database accounting for farming practices, from Chemisches und Veterinäruntersuchungsamt Stuttgart, Germany. Non-negative matrix factorization (NMF), adapted for data with excess zeros, was used to establish exposure profiles. The four extracted NMF components’ quintiles were introduced into Cox models estimating hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (95% CI), adjusted for known confounding factors. Results A total of 13 149 postmenopausal women were included in the analysis (169 BC cases, median follow-up = 4.83 years). Negative associations between Component 3, reflecting low exposure to synthetic pesticides, and postmenopausal BC risk were found [HRQ5 = 0.57; 95% CI (0.34; 0.93), p-trend = 0.006]. Positive association between Component 1 score (highly correlated to chlorpyrifos, imazalil, malathion, thiabendazole) and postmenopausal BC risk was found specifically among overweight and obese women [HRQ5 = 4.13; 95% CI (1.50; 11.44), p-trend = 0.006]. No associations were detected for the other components. Conclusion These associations suggest a potential role of dietary pesticide exposure on BC risk. Further research is needed to investigate the mechanisms and confirm these results in other populations.

Integrated Soil and Crop Management in Organic Agriculture: A Logical Framework to Ensure Food Quality and Human Health?

“…Lower pesticide exposure from fruit and vegetable consumption was recently found to be associated with improved reproductive health parameters in both men and women [216,217]. Similarly, a reduced incidence of breast cancer among postmenopausal women in the NutriNet-Santé cohort was linked to (i) low dietary exposure to synthetic pesticides such as chlorpyriphos, imazalil, malathion and thiabendazole [218], and (ii) high organic food consumption [210].…”

Exposures to pesticides and risk of cancer: Evaluation of recent epidemiological evidence in humans and paths forward

“…There were nine large prospective studies. 65,[80][81][82][83][84][85]125,126 Three were occupational cohort studies: the Agricultural Health Study (AHS) in the United States, 125 the AGRICAN cohort study in France, 126 64,65 In these cohorts, exposure was assessed at baseline via self-report or through census data; none included biomarkers. The AHS cohort is based in North Carolina and Iowa, and it includes some 57 000 licensed private and commercial pesticide applicators enrolled from 1993 to 1997.…”

Sustainable Diets and Cancer: a Systematic Review

“…There was also a positive association between land use and cancers of the brain and CNS, bladder, renal pelvis, ureter and other urinary organs, breast, colorectum, esophagus, kidney, larynx, liver, lung, myeloma, pancreas, prostate, skin melanoma, stomach, and thyroid Age at recruitment, marital status, education, physical activity, smoking status, BMI Sandoval-Insausti et al, 2021 [ 14 ] Nurses’ Health Study, Nurses’ Health Study II and Health Professionals Follow-up Study, USA Sex and mean age not given Not given Cancer incidence 23,678 HRs of total cancer associated with a 1 serving/day increase in intake: 1.01 (95% CI: 0.99–1.02) for low-pesticide-residue FVs 0.99 (95% CI: 0.97–1.01) for high pesticide residue fruits and vegetables High-pesticide-residue fruit and vegetable intake HR Q5 vs.Q1 : 1.00 (95% CI: 0.95–1.05), p -trend 0.77 Low-pesticide-residue fruit and vegetable intake HR Q5vs.Q1 : 0.99 (95% CI: 0.95–1.04), p -trend 0.74 In site-specific analyses, no association between intake of high-pesticide-residue FVs or low-pesticide-residue FV and risk of any sites was seen Age, height, BMI, ethnicity, physical activity, family history of cancer, physical examination in the past 2 years, history of colonoscopy or sigmoidoscopy, mammography in the past 2 years, prostate-specific antigen testing in the past 2 years, number of pack-years among ever smokers, postmenopausal hormone use, current multivitamin use, regular aspirin use, total energy intake, alcohol intake, and Alternate Healthy Eating Index score excluding criteria for intake of fruits and vegetables and alcohol. Additionally adjusted for intakes fruits and vegetables with undetermined residues and low-pesticide-residue fruits and vegetables, or high-pesticide-residue fruits and vegetables, respectively Rebouillat et al, 2021 [ 15 ] NutriNet-Santé, France 100% women, 60.5 years 13,149 Cancer incidence 169 NMF component 1 HR Q5 vs. Q1 : 1.77 (95% CI: 1.07–2.91), p -trend: 0.08; NMF Component 2 HR Q5 vs. Q1 : 0.99 (95% CI: 0.61–1.62), p -trend: 0.37; NMF component 3 HR Q5 vs. Q1 : 0.59 (95% CI: 0.36–0.98), p-trend: 0.01; NMF component 4 HR Q5 vs. Q1 : 0.66 (95% CI: 0.39–1.12), p -trend: 0.13; There was a significant negative association between NMF Component 3 (low synthetic-pesticide-exposure profile) and postmenopausal breast cancer risk Stratified analysis among women with BMI > 25 kg/m 2 found a positive association between NMF componen...…”

“…Similar results were obtained when examining specific cancer sites (Table 1 ). In an analysis of the NutriNet-Santé cohort [ 15 ], different profiles of dietary pesticide exposure were investigated for their association with post-menopausal invasive breast cancer risk. Components highly correlated with chlorpyriphos, imazalil, malathion, profenofos, and thiabendazole were positively associated with post-menopausal invasive breast cancer risk (HR Q5 vs. Q1 : 1.77, 95% CI: 1.07–2.91; fully adjusted model).…”