Association between chronic long-term exposure to airborne dioxins and breast cancer

Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer among women. Environmental pollutants, specifically those with endocrine disrupting properties like dioxins, may impact breast cancer development. Current epidemiological studies on the association between exposure to dioxins and the risk of breast cancer show inconsistent results. To address these uncertainties, our objective was to investigate the impact of airborne dioxin exposure on breast cancer risk within the E3N cohort, encompassing 5222 cases identified during the 1990–2011 follow-up and 5222 matched controls. Airborne dioxin exposure was assessed using a Geographic Information System-based metric considering residential proximity to dioxin emitting sources, their technical characteristics, exposure duration and wind direction. Additional analyses were performed using dioxin concentrations estimated by a chemistry transport model, CHIMERE. The results suggest a slightly increased risk between cumulative dioxin exposure at the residential address and overall breast cancer risk (adjusted odds ratio (OR) = 1.03, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.99–1.07, for a one standard deviation (SD) increment among controls (14.47 log-μg-TEQ/m²). The associations remained consistent for sources within 3, 5, and 10 km, and when restricting exposure to dioxin emissions from household waste incinerators. Similar OR estimates (OR = 1.02, 95% CI: 0.97–1.07, for a one SD increment) were obtained using the CHIMERE model. The findings of this study suggest the possibility of an increased risk of breast cancer associated with long-term residential exposure to dioxins and emphasize the importance of efforts to mitigate air pollution exposure.