Studying The Association Between Environmental Exposure to Polyfluoroalkyl Substances and Breast Cancer in Assiut Governorate- Egypt

• Perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) are persistent pollutants that are present in the environment.
• Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), known as the most detected per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)in various environmental compartments.They have been associated with plastic pollution and endocrine dysfunction.

Humans are exposed to PFASs through various pathways, including dietary items such as seafood, drinking water, and some dental floss.. Contaminated drinking water and food supply are potential sources of 0ral exposure to PFAS PFASs have been used in various products such as firefighting foams, surfactants, non-stick pans, food contact materials such as boxes, bags, wrappers, cups, (Lim, 2019), and table wares, and personal care products including cosmetics.

Over the past 180 years (1839-2019), numerous emerging contaminants have been identified, Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluoro octane sulfonate (PFOS) are two of the most used PFAS compounds in various applications and have already been identified as endocrine-disrupting chemicals(EDCs).

Due to their structural and functional similarities with endogenous steroid hormones, EDCs mimic and interfere with homeostatic mechanisms and signaling pathways of hormones in the body even at low concentrations. They cause a variety of endocrine and metabolic disorders ,developmental abnormalities and hormone-dependent cancers.

PFAS exhibits a wide range of toxic effects, including developmental toxicity, genotoxicity, carcinogenicity, hepatotoxicity, reproductive toxicity, immunotoxicity, cytotoxicity, neurotoxicity, and hormonal toxicity.