More than 400 chemicals in plastic products linked to breast cancer – study

Women are twice as likely as men to be diagnosed with cancer before age 50 – with breast cancer a major driver of high rates. Photograph: Bill Diodato/Getty Images

More than 400 chemicals regularly used in everyday plastic products are linked to breast cancer, and the dangerous compounds could be a driver of increasingly elevated cancer rates in young women, new research finds.

Many of the toxic chemicals – such as PFAS, phthalates, parabens and aromatic amines – are added to food packaging, personal care products and single-use plastics, making exposures nearly ubiquitous.