Research has shown that a chemical preservative used in personal care products such as sunscreens, shampoos and cosmetics may cause cancer at low levels. The preservative parabens have been discovered to activate the same estrogen receptors, as estradiol – a natural hormone. This leaves a strong potential of promoting cancer cell growth.

The study was conducted at the University of California Berkeley (UCB), where researchers pointed out that “real world” effects of parabens had been missed by previous tests by considering it in isolation. The effects should have instead been factored in interaction with other molecules, reports UPI. Researchers have drawn attention to the results that suggest parabens are more dangerous than previously thought.

Dale Leitman, a gynaecologist and molecular biologist at UCB, said, “Although parabens are known to mimic the growth effects of estrogens on breast cancer cells, some consider their effect too weak to cause harm,” according to a UCB press release. “But this might not be true when parabens are combined with other agents that regulate cell growth.”

To measure the interaction of breast cancer cells with parabens in real life, the preservative was introduced to cells that expressed two types of receptors – one for human epidermal growth factor receptor 2, or HER2, and the other for estrogen. A growth factor made in breast cells was used to activate HER2 receptors in cancer cells, which were exposed to parabens, triggering estrogen receptors to turn on genes stimulating tumour growth.

Chris Vulpe, a toxicologist at the Center for Environmental and Human Toxicology at the University of Florida, said in a press release, “While this study focused on parabens, it's also possible that the potency of other estrogen mimics has been underestimated by current testing approaches.”

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