rBGH, Hormones, Breast Cancer,
and Pink Ribbons
Martin Donohoe
Recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone (rBGH)
• aka recombinant Bovine
Somatotropin (rBST), brand name
Posilac©
• 10-15% of U.S. dairy cows injected
with rBGH
• Used to increase milk production by
cattle
rBGH
• Marketed primarily to large dairy farms (LDFs),
which are supplanting small dairy farms
• LDFs have
– Worse environmental impact records
– Higher rates of workplace injuries
– Contribute to decreasing agricultural
diversity
Effects of rBGH on Humans
• Serum IGF-1 levels increase 13% above baseline
in individuals drinking milk from rBGH-treated
cattle
• IGF-1 interacts with estrogens, androgens, and
other growth promoters
• Milk is the food most associated with high IGF-1
levels
• IGF-1 not important in yogurt, since it is used as a
food source by some of the bacteria responsible
for yogurt production
Risks of rBGH
• IGF-1 is a suspected contributor to breast,
prostate and GI cancers
– Promotes cell division and reduces
apoptosis (preprogrammed cell death) in
animals
– Inhibits the ability of various anti-cancer
drugs to kill cultured human breast cancer
cells
Risks of rBGH
• Along with pesticides, other endocrine
disruptors, and obesity, IGF-1 may be partly
responsible for earlier onset of puberty (9.9
yrs in 2006, compared with 10.9 years in 1991)
– IGF-1 also associated with PCOS (polycystic
ovarian syndrome) and obesity
• Women who eat dairy products deliver twins
at five times the rate of vegans
Risks of rBGH
• Children, who have more years of life to live
and drink more milk (and more milk per body
weight) than adults, are disproportionately
affected
• Some evidence suggests rBGH milk being
funneled to U.S. children through school lunch
programs
– Many school systems have gone rBGH-free
Harmful Effects of rBGH
• FDA: rBGH causes 16 different harmful
conditions in cattle, including heat stress,
hoof disorders, GI disturbances, birth
disorders, ovarian and uterine problems,
and mastitis
–Antibiotic treatment of mastitis leads
to increased antibiotic resistance in
cattle and humans
rBGH (Posilac©)
• Originally developed and marketed
by Monsanto
• Sold to Elanco, a division of Eli Lilly, in
2008
Monsanto
• Agent Orange, PCBs, dioxins, DDT
• Largest producer of genetically-modified
seeds
–Contamination events
–Unethical experiments
–Harassment of scientists
Monsanto
• Pesticide Roundup used in “War on Drugs” in
Colombia
• Incidents of bribery, environmental
contamination
• Profitable
• Member of corporate front groups fighting
food safety legislation/organizations
Monsanto
• Roger Beachy (long-time president of the
Danforth Plant, Monsanto’s nonprofit
arm) now chief of USDA’s National
Institute of Food and Agriculture,
overseeing almost $500 million in grants
and research funding
Monsanto
• Islam Siddiqui, VP at CropLife America
(US branch of CropLife International, an
agribusiness front group led by
Monsanto and others) Obama’s Chief
Agricultural Negotiator for the US Trade
Representative’s Office
Eli Lilly
• Paid record-setting settlement of $1.42
billion to US Justice Department for
illegally marketing Zyprexa to children
and elderly for non-FDA approved
indications
• Multiple other instances of illegal and
unethical marketing
Eli Lilly
• Manufactures antibiotics used to treat
mastitis
• Produces Gemzar (used to treat breast
cancer)
Elanco
• Marketed diethylstilbestrol (DES) for almost 2
decades despite data showing link between
DES exposure in mothers and clear cell vaginal
cancers in offspring
– Contraindicated for human use by FDA in
1971, used in other parts of world through
late 1970s
– Banned for use in cattle in 1979
Elanco
• Manufactures ractopamine (Optaflexx), a beta
agonist given to livestock for last 7-28 days of
life to increase protein synthesis
– OK’d by FDA, but banned in 160 nations
– Can cause hyperactivity and muscle
breakdown
– Dangerous for human consumption
Elanco
• 2009: Elanco paper, commissioned through PR
company Porter-Novelli, authors paid by
Elacno
– Loaded with misinformation (see report and OR
pSR rebuttal on phsj website)
• Authors admit falsely claiming AMA and AAP
endorsements for rBGH, misstate ACS’s
neutral position
FDA Approval of rBGH
• OK’d for use by FDA in 1993; on market
since 1994
• FDA official (and former Monsanto
attorney) Michael Taylor oversaw process
– became Monsanto VP after leaving
FDA; now FDA Deputy Commissioner for
Foods and Veterinary Medicine
FDA Approval of rBGH
• FDA relied on industry summary of internal
tests
• GAO investigation:
– Found 3 FDA employees involved in
decision had conflicts of interest and
multiple ethics rules violations
– Criticized sloppy, manipulative science, lack
of data on human health effects
rBGH Worldwide
• Canada, Australia, New Zealand,
Japan, and the European Union have
banned rBGH
• The Codex Alimentarius, the UN’s
main food safety body, has refused
to certify rBGH as safe
Opposition to rBGH
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APHA
ANA
Health Care Without Harm
AMA President Ron Davis (’07-’08)
BMJ
Opposition to rBGH
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Humane Society
Animal Protection Institute
Humane Farming Association
Farm Sanctuary
ACS – no formal position (2009);
previously supported rBGH
rBGH Today
• All fluid milk products in Oregon now
rBGH-free
• 55 of the top 100 U.S. dairies are now at
least partially rBGH-free or have
announced that they will be
• Starbucks’ (company-owned stores),
Chipotle, 160 hospitals nationwide rBGHfree
Hormones in Beef
• Six steroid hormones routinely used in
US beef production: estradiol,
testosterone, progesterone, zeranol.
melengestrol, trenbolone
• DES (1954-1979)
Hormones in Beef
• Since 1988, use of steroids in cattle
production illegal in Europe
• US government states hormone residues
in beef from adult cattle pose no threat
to human health
–Endocrine Society, APHA, others
disagree
Other reproductive
toxins/carcinogens
• Phthalates, bis-phenol A (BPA), pesticides
(persistent organic pollutants)
• Body burden high (EWG)
• Nursing infants at top of food chain
Hormone-Related Diseases on the
Rise
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Breast and prostate cancers
Thyroid disease
Obesity
Diabetes
Endometriosis
Uterine fibroids
Infertility
Hormones in the Food Supply
• Earlier onset of breast development and
puberty in young girls
• Altered sex ratio (more girls, fewer boys)
• Increasing cryptorchidism
–Risk factor for testicular cancer
• Micropenis, hypospadias increasing
Komen Foundation
• Largest breast cancer charity in US
• Founded by Nancy Brinker, whose sister Susan
Komen died of breast cancer in 1980
– Brinker – ambassador to Hungary under George W
Bush
– 2011 salary = $417,712; 2012 $684,000
• Known for pink ribbon campaigns, Race for
the Cure
Komen Foundation
• Affiliates in over 100 US cities and 50 other
countries
• Has collected over $1.9 billion for breast
cancer research and programs, including free
mammograms and biopsies for uninsured
women
– Mammograms decrease risk of dying of breast
cancer by 0-20%
Komen Foundation
• 83% of donations go to mission programs
– 43% to education
– 15% to research ($63 million in 2011, compared
with $763 million [NIH], $150 million [DOD], $17
million [ACS])
– 12% to screening
– 5% to treatment
• 18% to fund-raising and administration
Pink Ribbon Campaigns
• Positive aspects:
– Community of survivors
– Fund raising
– Research
– Advocacy
– $30 million raised per year through pink ribbon
campaigns
• Negative aspects: Pinkwashing
Pinkwashing
• Outgrowth of the transformation of
corporate philanthropy in the 1980s and
1990s to "strategic philanthropy" and
"cause-related marketing“
• No one owns the pink ribbon image or
oversees its use
Pinkwashing
• Pink ribbon packaging can mean
donations to breast cancer research
–with or without cap
–with or without use of coupon
–ongoing or time-limited
–or simply to raise awareness of breast
cancer
Pink Ribbons
• Avon Breast Cancer Crusade, Komen
Foundation spend up to 25% of money raised
on overhead
• Breast Cancer Awareness Month created by
Astra Zeneca (manufacturer of tamoxifen)
– AZ was a leading manufacturer of pesticides until
corporate reorganization in 2000
Pinkwashing
• "Consumption philanthropy" may
dampen people's willingness to make
direct charitable donations
• Pink ribbon products can be
carcinogenic, production may involve
labor and even human rights violations
Egregious Examples of Pinkwashing
• Cosmetics
–teens use avg. 17 personal care
products/d
–adults 12/d
• Yoplait – previously contained rBGH (now
rBGH-free)
Egregious Examples of Pinkwashing
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Bottled water
Pink alcohol
Drill bits used in (carcinogenic) fracking
Kentucky Fried Chicken
NFL
Jingle Jugs
Cosmetics
• ACS's "Look Good...Feel Better" program
provides 30,000 women per year with a free
makeover and bag of makeup donated by the
Cosmetic, Toiletry, and Fragrance Assn
• Cosmetics contain a number of environmental
toxins
– See Environmental Working Group website for
database of toxins in cosmetics
Environmental Causes of Breast
Cancer
• Komen Foundation and ACS largely
ignore environmental contributors to
breast cancer
–30-50% associated with known risk
factors (family history – 10%; early
menarche, late menopause late or no
childbirth, HRT alcohol, radiation
exposure)
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Environmental Causes of Breast
Cancer
• KF denies link between BPA and other
endocrine disruptors and breast cancer,
despite “Reducing Environmental
Cancer" (a report from the President's
Cancer Panel) and multiple suggestive
peer-reviewed studies (and in opposition
to the Precautionary Principle)
Environmental Causes of Breast
Cancer
• KF denies link between exposure to
organochlorine pesticides and cancer
– EHP, 2007: fivefold increased risk of breast
cancer among women exposed to DDT as
adolescents
– Multiple other studies showing link
• Komen Foundation accused of overstating
benefits of mammography (BMJ, 2012)
Environmental Causes of Breast
Cancer
• ACS allocates less than 0.1% of its annual budget to
environmental and occupational causes of cancer
– ACS has rejected the President’s Cancer Panel
Report, which concluded that “the true
environmental burden of environmentally-induced
cancers has been grossly underestimated.”
– Pays its CEO $2 million/yr
– High administrative costs
Environmental Causes of Breast
Cancer
• ACS “Excalibur Donors” ($100,000+/yr) include
big Pharma and petrochemical, industrial
waste, auto, cosmetic, and junk food
companies
• Komen has over 200 corporate partners which
provide approximately $50 million/yr in
revenue
Komen Foundation and Planned
Parenthood
• 2012: Komen Foundation revokes grants for
breast cancer screening programs at Planned
Parenthood ($700,000 annually), then
reverses decision after intense public protest
– Donations drop dramatically; multiple events
cancelled
– 2013: Hires Judy Salerno (from IOM) as CEO
• Komen Foundation’s position on embryonic
stem cell research unclear
What Can You Do?
• Read the fine print when you buy pink
Avoid bottled water - use a refillable stainless
steel bottle
• Avoid milk products from rBGH-treated cattle
• Eat organic, free-range beef if you are not
vegetarian
• Do not microwave food in plastic containers
What Can You Do?
• Avoid cooking in non-stick pans and eating
foods packaged with non-stick plastic
• Get recommended breast exams,
mammograms
• Get angry at corporate malefactors for
polluting the environment and food supply
– e.g., GE-NY Presbyterian agreement
• Spread the word
Further Information
• Breast Cancer Action (download “Think
Before You Pink” guide):
http://bcaction.org/
• Campaign for Safe Food, Oregon
Physicians for Social Responsibility:
http://www.psr.org/chapters/oregon/saf
e-food/campaign-for-safe-food.html
Contact Information
Public Health and Social Justice
Website
http://www.publichealthandsocialjustice.org
http://www.phsj.org
martindonohoe@phsj.org