4 hours Ago By George Citroner
The research suggests that exposure to these prevalent urban conditions may elevate cancer risk by as much as 25 percent. Researchers evaluated the impact of two environmental factors during the perinatal period—from before birth to a year after delivery. One factor was fine particulate matter (PM2.
5) air pollution and the other, exposure to outdoor artificial light. These microscopic particles are a major concern for public health because their small size allows them to travel deep into the respiratory tract, reaching the lungs and even entering the bloodstream. They found that for each 10 micrograms per cubic meter increase in PM2.
5, there was a 7 percent rise in the odds of developing papillary thyroid cancer. This relationship was more pronounced among older adolescents aged 15-19 and Hispanic children. For parents, it may be difficult to identify symptoms of thyroid disorders, as they are commonly overlooked as behavioral disorders or other medical conditions, Dr.
Francisco Contreras, chief oncologist at Oasis of Hope Hospital, told The Epoch Times. Artificial Lighting While pediatric thyroid cancer is still rare, affecting approximately five children per million in the United States, the rates are increasing about 3 to 5 percent per year both in the United States and globally, Nicole Deziel, associate professor at Yale School of Public Health and study author, told The Epoch Times. “Teenage girls between the ages of 15 and 19 have the highest incidence rate,” she said, emphasizing that pediatric patients with the most common forms of thyroid cancer have a greater than 95 percent survival rate.
One reason may be that medical imaging techniques have improved, offering earlier detection of very small nodules that may not have progressed to a serious disease, according to Deziel. “However, many scientists do not think this can fully explain the trend,” she noted. “Environmental exposures, particularly endocrine-disrupting chemicals, are being investigated as contributing factors.
” Higher body mass index among children could also contribute to the trend. She noted that children’s ongoing exposure to long-lasting endocrine-disrupting chemicals leads to an early buildup of toxins that impairs thyroid function, increasing their risk of developing thyroid cancer in childhood..
