Yale Study: “Forever Chemicals” Promote Cancer Cell Migration

New research evaluates the relationship between PFAS and colorectal carcinoma.

In a new study by researchers at the Yale School of Public Health, two “forever chemicals” spurred cancer cells in the lab to migrate to new positions, an indication that the chemicals could contribute to cancer metastasis in living organisms.

The study addressed the group of industrial chemicals called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The substances are known as “forever chemicals” because they don’t break down in the environment and can build up in the human body. All have the ability to shed water and resist penetration by oils. They are notorious for their ubiquity, their exceptional environmental stability, and their suspected toxic effects.

“PFAS make up a prevalent class of persistent organic pollutants of increasing public concern worldwide. They have been frequently detected in the environment, such as in drinking water, indoor dust, cleaning products, and coatings,” said co-first author Jie Zheng, a postdoctoral associate who was working in the lab of principal investigator Caroline Johnson, PhD, associate professor of epidemiology (environmental health sciences), at the time the research was conducted.

The chemicals show up in the blood of newborns, of people living in sub-Arctic Indigenous communities, in fish and mussels, even birds’ eggs. No level of PFAS in the body is considered safe, and they have been linked to a litany of health problems, including cancers. In November, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), a common PFAS, as carcinogenic to humans and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS), another common PFAS, as possibly carcinogenic to humans.