Common herbicide found to increase the risk of lymphoma

A new study has shown that the herbicide glyphosphate could increase the risk of cancer by 41% in exposed people. The results were published this week in the journal Research on mutation / Exams in mutation research.

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Glyphosphate is a popular herbicide used worldwide. For this study, researchers conducted a meta-badysis using existing weed control studies. They found that exposure to this herbicide had a significant effect on the risk of developing non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), a cancer of the immune system.

All meta-badyzes conducted to date, including our own, consistently report the same key finding: exposure to GBH (glyphosate herbicides) is badociated with an increased risk of NHL. "

In 2015, the International Agency for Research on Cancer of the World Health Organization declared that glyphosphate is "probably carcinogenic to humans". The US Environmental Protection Agency had however stated in 2017 that the herbicide "would probably not be carcinogenic to humans," said one that was supported by the European Authority food safety.

In 2017, Bayer also declared that glyphosate was a "safe and effective weed control tool". Around 800 people then sued Mosanto and the owner of Bayer AG for claiming that the glyphosphate containing Roundup of Monsanto was the cause of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. That number rose to about 9,000 by 2018.

For the study, the team of researchers reviewed published studies on the effects of glyphosate on humans as well as animals between 2001 and 2018.

This research provides the most recent badysis of glyphosate and its relationship to non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, incorporating a 2018 study of more than 54,000 people working as licensed pesticide applicators. "

Rachel Shaffer, co-author

The results of the meta-badysis revealed that in those most exposed to the herbicide, there was a "convincing" badociation with the onset of NHL.

The authors agree, however, that data on the chemical directly causing cancer was limited. They write that since the mid-2000s, the increase in "green burndown" agriculture, which involves applying glyphosate herbicides to all crops prior to harvest, has resulted in a significant increase in exposure to the chemical. .

Bayer refuted the claims, saying the results were due to "statistical manipulation" and that there were "flaws" in the design and methods of the study. They stated that the study "provides no scientifically valid evidence that contradicts the findings of many scientific studies demonstrating that glyphosate herbicides are not carcinogenic".

Lead author, Lianne Sheppard, professor in biostatistics and environmental and occupational health sciences, explained that the link was real – the herbicide was indeed carcinogenic.