SILENT SPRING INSTITUTE
RESEARCHING THE ENVIRONMENT AND WOMEN’S HEALTH
FY 08 Research Funding Request
STOP BREAST CANCER BEFORE IT STARTS: Breast Cancer Risk Reduction Project
Breast cancer rates have increased from 1 in 20 women in the 1950’s to 1 in 7 women currently.
For over a decade, the Silent Spring Institute (SSI) and the Massachusetts Breast Cancer Coalition
(MBCC) have lead efforts to investigate and educate about an environmental connection to the
rising rates of the disease. Massachusetts, having one of the high incidence rates in the country, is
leading efforts nationally to investigate causes of the disease.
SSI and MBCC, along with U-Mass Lowell, collaborate to propose innovative plans to reduce
exposure to environmental toxins and develop practical alternatives to chemicals of concern.
Scientists across the country and beyond look to SSI’s innovative research when developing their
plans and, with our lead, the larger cohort of investigators are developing a clearer picture of the
problem.
As a result of SSI’s past efforts, evidence now exists detailing toxicants in our homes and
groundwater that are related to the proliferation of breast cancer cells. We propose, with the
Legislature’s leadership, the following Breast Cancer Risk Reduction Project, funded at $1M through
the Toxics Use Reduction Institute Line Item (7100-0300), as the next step in the fight against
breast cancer:
Identify Breast Cancer
“Hot Spots”
Partnering with U-Mass Lowell,
update and analyze breast cancer
and environment tracking data to
identify high-risk populations,
disparities, and promising
avenues for prevention research.
Exposure Tracking /Risk
Reduction Pilot
Partnering with local experts,
develop a program of exposure
tracking and exposure reduction
in MA homes, including those in
high incidence areas and urban
minority neighborhoods
BREAST
CANCER RISK
REDUCTION
Protect Drinking Water
from Estrogen Contamination
Partnering with experts to
evaluate best ways to protect
drinking water from estrogen
contamination and other
endocrine disruptors.
Occupational Health:
Alternatives
U-Mass Lowell’s green chemistry
program addresses occupational
exposure hazards, many of which
are related to higher rates of
breast cancer. Collaboration will
seek promotion of safer
alternatives.
Education and Outreach
Research Details
Identify Breast Cancer “Hot Spots”

Massachusetts has one of the highest breast cancer rates in the nation. Cape Cod women have
significantly higher risk than others in the state.

Most women diagnosed with breast cancer are the first in their family to get the disease. Genetics
are not the main cause. We need to find environmental risk factors that we can change, so we can
prevent breast cancer.

Silent Spring Institute developed the Massachusetts Health and Environment Information System
(MassHEIS), a sophisticated computer mapping system that integrates multiple data sources to
explore patterns of disease in search of opportunities for prevention.
Next step: Dr. Richard Clapp (U Mass – Lowell) and Silent Spring Institute to update and analyze
breast cancer and environment tracking data to identify high risk populations, disparities, and promising
avenues for prevention research. Other hormonal diseases – prostate, testicular, endometrial, ovarian
cancers and reproductive health – will benefit from this work.
Exposure Tracking /Risk Reduction Pilot

Silent Spring Institute’s groundbreaking Household Exposure Study showed widespread exposure
in homes to pollutants that mimic estrogen, a known breast cancer risk factor.

This research has been nationally recognized and cited in Consumer Reports, Business Week, the
Los Angeles Times, and elsewhere.
Next step: Silent Spring Institute scientists and other local experts to develop a program of exposure
tracking and exposure reduction for Massachusetts homes, including homes in areas with higher breast
cancer risk (Cape Cod and some North Shore and western Boston suburbs) and urban minority
populations at disproportionate risk.
Protect Drinking Water from Estrogen Contamination

Silent Spring Institute’s Cape Cod study was the first research anywhere to measure estrogenic
activity in groundwater. New results published in a leading scientific journal and reported in
Scientific American show estrogens from women’s urine, pharmaceuticals, and estrogen-mimics
from laundry detergent pass through septic systems and into the environment, threatening drinking
water on Cape Cod and other communities that rely on septic systems and well water.
Next step: Silent Spring Institute scientists and other scientists to evaluate the best ways to protect
drinking water from estrogens and other endocrine disruptors.
Occupational Health: Alternatives

Since prevention is the way to truly end the breast cancer epidemic, investing in green chemistry
solutions for chemicals known to cause breast cancer in animals or to mimic estrogen is a priority.
The University of Massachusetts - Lowell has unique programs that connect with women workers
and manufacturers, while Silent Spring Institute has unique knowledge specific to chemicals
suspected as breast cancer risks.
Next step: Develop collaboration between U Mass – Lowell and Silent Spring Institute that address
exposures of women workers.
For More Information, Please Contact Deborah Shields or Erin Boles at (617) 376-6222 or eboles@mbcc.org