Only 30% of all breast cancer can be explained by known risk factors.
Increases in breast cancer incidence rates in Hawaii over the past few
decades cannot be attributed solely to improvements in screening and
detection. Avoidable environmental factors may contribute to a proport
ion of the unexplained cases. Emerging evidence on endocrine disruptio
n suggests that environmental chemicals may play a role in the develop
ment of breast cancer. Agricultural chemicals, including endocrine dis
rupters, have been used intensively in Hawaii's island ecosystem over
the past 40 years leaching into groundwater, and leading to unusually
widespread occupational and general population exposures. This paper d
iscusses breast cancer patterns in Hawaii in the context of documented
episodes of exposure to two endocrine-disrupting chemicals, chlordane
/heptachlor and 1,2-dibromo-3-chloropropane (DBCP), at levels that som
etimes exceeded federal standards by several orders of magnitude. in l
ight of this history, detailed geographic-based studies should be unde
rtaken in Hawaii to elucidate the potential role of environmental fact
ors in the development of breast cancer and other diseases.