Relentless Ddt

Years later, residual amounts of the pesticide may trigger breast tumors

THOUGH BANNED IN THE U.S. IN 1972, DDT IS NOT forgotten. Soluble in fat, the insecticide leaves trace amounts that can linger for decades in human tissue. Now a study published by the National Cancer Institute suggests that these residual effects may be deadly. Researchers from the Mount Sinai School of Medicine and New York University have found that the greater the exposure to DDT the higher the risk of breast cancer for women.

The scientists measured the pesticide residue in blood samples taken from 58 women in whom breast cancer had recently been discovered. Then they analyzed the blood of...

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