Abstract

OBJECTIVES:  This study tests the hypothesis that fluoride exposure in a nonoccupational setting is a risk factor for childhood osteosarcoma.

METHODS:  A population-based case-control study was conducted among residents of New York State, excluding New York City. Case subjects (n = 130) were diagnosed with osteosarcoma between 1978 and 1988, at age 24 years or younger. Control subjects were matched to case subjects on year of birth and sex. Exposure information was obtained by a telephone interview with the subject, parent, or both.

RESULTS:  Based on the parents’ responses, total lifetime fluoride exposure was not significantly associated with osteosarcoma among all subjects combined or among females. However, a significant protective trend was observed among males. Protective trends were observed for fluoridated toothpaste, fluoride tablets, and dental fluoride treatments among all subjects and among males. Based on the subjects’ responses, no significant associations between fluoride exposure and osteosarcoma were observed.

CONCLUSIONS:  Fluoride exposure does not increase the risk of osteosarcoma and may be protective in males. The protective effect may not be directly due to fluoride exposure but to other factors associated with good dental hygiene. There is also biologic plausibility for a protective effect.

• Related Studies :

  • A brief report on the association of drinking water fluoridation and the incidence of osteosarcoma among young males

    Executive Summary It is well known that fluoride provides important public health benefits by effectively preventing dental caries in children. The Public Health Service (1991) endorses artificial fluoridation of drinking water at a concentration of 0.7-1.2 milligrams of fluoride per liter of water (or parts per million) as the optimally beneficial

  • Therapy-induced bone changes in oncology imaging with 18F-sodium fluoride (NaF) PET–CT.

    18F-Sodium fluoride (18F-NaF) is a PET tracer that is mostly used in the evaluation of bone metastasis in oncology cases. Recently, 18F-NaF PET/CT is gaining wide popularity owing to its higher sensitivity over the other conventional bone tracer with higher and rapid single-pass extraction, negligible plasma protein binding, rapid blood,

  • Osteosarcoma: a Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results program-based analysis from 1975 to 2017.

    Background Osteosarcoma is the most common primary bone malignancy. As a rare cancer, population-based studies remain small with limited information on finer demographic categories. Recent studies have reported important genetic differences based on age and ethnicity, and more detailed studies are needed to better understand potentially important osteosarcoma risk groups. Methods Incidence and

  • Is fluoride a risk factor for bone cancer? Small area analysis of osteosarcoma and Ewing sarcoma diagnosed among 0-49-year-olds in Great Britain, 1980-2005.

    BACKGROUND: Artificial fluoridation of drinking water to improve dental health has long been a topic of controversy. Opponents of this public health measure have cited the possibility of bone cancer induction. The study objective was to examine whether increased risk of primary bone cancer was associated with living in areas

  • Toxicology and Carcinogenesis Studies of Sodium Fluoride in F344/N Rats and B6C3F1 Mice (Drinking Water Studies)

    CASRN: 7681-49-4 Chemical Formula: NaF Molecular Weight: 41.99 Report Date: December 1990 Sodium fluoride is a white, crystalline, water-soluble powder used in municipal water fluoridation systems, in various dental products, and in a variety of industrial applications. Toxicology and carcinogenesis studies were conducted with F344/N rats and B6C3F1 mice of each sex by incorporating

• Related FAN Content :

  • Fluoride's Mutagenicity: In vivo Studies

    Consistent with dozens of in vitro studies, a number of in vivo studies, in both humans and animals, have found evidence of fluoride-induced genetic damage. In particular, research on humans exposed to high levels of fluoride have found increased levels of "sister chromatid exchange" (SCE). As noted in one study: "In

  • Fluoride's Mutagenicity: In vitro Studies

    According to the National Toxicology Program, "the preponderance of evidence" from laboratory "in vitro" studies indicate that fluoride is a mutagenic compound. Many substances which are mutagens, are also carcinogens (i.e. they can cause cancer). As is typical for in vitro studies, the concentrations of fluoride that have generally been tested

  • Micronucleus and Sister Chromatid Exchange Frequency in Endemic Fluorosis

    The rise of sister chromatid exchange (SCE) and micronucleus (MN) in the peripheral blood lymphocytes of the fluorine-intoxicated patients indicates that fluorine is a mutagenic agent which can cause DNA and chromosomal damage.

  • NTP Bioassay on Fluoride/Cancer (1990)

    In 1977, the U.S. Congress requested that animal studies be conducted to determine if fluoride can cause cancer. The result of the Congressional request was an extensive animal study conducted in the 1980s by the National Toxicology Program (NTP) and published in 1990. The main finding of NTP's study was a dose-dependent increase in osteosarcoma (bone cancer) among the fluoride-treated male rats. 

  • Fluoride/Osteosarcoma Link Is Biologically Plausible

    The "biological plausiblility" of a fluoride-osteosarcoma link is widely acknowledged in the scientific literature. The biological plausibility centers around three facts: 1) Bone is the principal site of fluoride accumulation, particularly during the growth spurts of childhood; 2) Fluoride is a mutagen when present at sufficient concentrations, and 3) Fluoride can stimulate the proliferation of osteoblasts (bone-forming cells).