Global warming linked to increase in cancer among women, finds study

A recent study found that global warming could be making cancer in women more common and deadly. The study was conducted in the Middle East and North Africa, and the region is predicted to reach three to four degrees Celsius of warming about three decades earlier than the rest of the world. The study was published in the journal Frontiers in Public Health. 

Researchers, including those from The American University in Cairo, Egypt analysed prevalence and deaths due to cancer with temperatures between 1998 and 2019. They found a "small, but statistically significant" rise in prevalence and death rates of breast, ovarian, uterine, and cervical cancers.

The researchers said that for an increase in temperature by a degree Celsius, prevalence of the cancers was found to rise by 173-280 cases per one lakh people -- cases of ovarian cancer rose the most, and those of breast cancer the least.

Death rates increased by 171-332 per one lakh people for each degree of temperature rise, with the biggest rise in ovarian cancer cases and the smallest in cervical cancer. Findings of the study suggest that an increased ambient temperature is probably a risk factor for breast, ovarian, uterine and cervical cancers.

Wafa Abuelkheir Mataria of The American University in Cairo and the first author of the study said, "As temperatures rise, cancer mortality among women also rises -- particularly for ovarian and breast cancers. Although the increases per degree of temperature rise are modest, their cumulative



public health impact is substantial."

Studies have shown that conditions driven by climate change - rising temperatures, compromised food and water security, and poor air quality - increase the risk of disease and death worldwide.

In the context of cancer, people are potentially exposed more to risk factors like environmental toxins and are less likely to receive a prompt diagnosis and treatment -- and women are especially physiologically vulnerable, the researchers said.

The health risks are "compounded by inequalities that limit access to healthcare. Marginalised women face a multiplied risk because they are more exposed to environmental hazards and less able to access early screening and treatment services," co-author Sungsoo Chun, of The American University in Cairo, said.

The researchers added that the higher number of cancer cases observed in the study could also reflect improvements in cancer screening.

However, an improved screening would be expected to result in fewer deaths, as early-stage cancer is easier to treat, they said.

But both death rates and prevalence rose, suggesting that the driving factor is exposure to risk factors, the team said.

"Our analysis indicates a significant correlation between prolonged exposure to high ambient temperatures and all four cancer types studied. Notably, the prevalence of breast, ovarian, and cervical cancers is markedly influenced by temperature increases," the authors wrote.