COMPARISON OF ORGANOCHLORINE PESTICIDE AND POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYL RESIDUES IN HUMAN BREAST ADIPOSE-TISSUE AND SERUM

The presence of organochlorine pesticides, such as DDT[2,2-bis(p-chlor ophenyl)-1,1,1-trichloroethane] and of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs ) in human serum and adipose tissue has been reported in many studies over the last four decades. Recently, debate has heightened concerning the link of these compounds to breast cancer. To clarify and resolve this issue, accurate analytical residue data must be obtained. Separat ion of the organochlorine pesticides from the PCBs in breast tissue is critical to obtaining valid residue data. Based on methods refined in the Analytical Laboratory at Colorado State University, accurate resi due levels were established for nine individual PCB congeners and eigh t organochlorine pesticides. The breast adipose tissue method used was a modification of the Mills et al. and de Faubert Maunder et al. meth ods. The serum method employed was a modification of the Burse et al. method. Both breast adipose tissue and serum from 36 women were analyz ed, and correlations of the residues from the two substrates were eval uated. Serum concentrations of p,p'-DDE, the primary metabolite of p,p '-DDT, were correlated (alpha = .05) with the concentrations of p,p'-D DE in human breast adipose tissue (r = .808). Serum concentrations of the PCB congener BZ 153 were also significantly correlated to the huma n breast adipose tissue concentrations of BZ 153 (r = .377). No signif icant relationship was found between serum concentrations and tissue r esidues for 15 of the 17 compounds analyzed. This lack of correlation between breast adipose tissue and serum, as well as an absence of the compound residues in serum, emphasized that adipose tissue should be a nalyzed in addition to serum to fully understand the relationship of t he organochlorine compounds to breast cancer.