Human Exposure to Halogenated Aromatic Compounds

Using data from the Taiwanese death registry and the census of victims of the poisoning, we compared mortality at 28 years after the PCB exposure occurred. For the first time, there was excess mortality from cancer, specifically stomach cancer. This adds consistency to the evaluations made by several public health organizations that these chemicals are carcinogenic for humans. There was also an unexpected excess of deaths from systemic lupus, which has not been seen in other cohorts exposed to similar chemicals. <P>Using the North Carolina data, we found that, by applying longitudinal techniques to analysis of our growth data, that girls who would go on the have early puberty were heavier than other girls by the time they were 6-12 months old. Boys had the same pattern, but it was less pronounced.