Permanent Hair Dye Use Linked to Increased Breast Cancer Risk

Permanent hair dye use is associated with an increased risk for breast cancer, especially among black women, according to a study published online in the International Journal of Cancer.

Carolyn E. Eberle, from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and colleagues examined the association between hair dye and chemical relaxer/straightener use and breast cancer by ethnicity among 46,709 Sister Study participants, ages 35 to 74 years, who had a sister with breast cancer but were breast cancer-free themselves.

The researchers identified 2,794 breast cancers during a mean follow-up of 8.3 years. At enrollment, 55 percent of participants reported using permanent dye. Permanent dye use was associated with an increased risk for breast cancer in black women (hazard ratio [HR], 1.45; 95 percent confidence interval [CI], 1.10 to 1.90) and white women (HR, 1.07; 95 percent CI, 0.99 to 1.16). Personal straightener use was associated with breast cancer risk among all participants (HR, 1.18; 95 percent CI, 0.99 to 1.41); higher risk was associated with increased frequency (P for trend, 0.02). Increased breast cancer risk was also seen with nonprofessional application of semipermanent dye (HR, 1.28; 95 percent CI, 1.05 to 1.56) and straighteners (HR, 1.27; 95 percent CI, 0.99 to 1.62) to others.

"As hair dye and straighteners are common exposures, these findings have the potential for substantial public health impact," the authors write.

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