The limited nature of evidence on some environmental cancer hazards should not be confused with proof that no harm has occurred: the research is hard to do and, in the US, very little of it is now funded by the government and private sector. Moreover, confusion about environmental cancer risks also results from longstanding, carefully cultivated and well-financed disinformation campaigns inspired by the machinations of the tobacco industry.
We cannot afford to ignore the signs of the importance of the environment for our health. To address the scourge of cancer, we must complement efforts to detect and treat cancer with new ways to keep people from developing the disease in the first place.
Devra Davis is director of the Center for Environmental Oncology at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute and professor of epidemiology at the University of Pittsburgh's Graduate School of Public Health.
Copyright: Project Syndicate
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