Addendum: The growing incidence of prostate cancer in the French Caribbean islands, Martinique and Guadeloupe: A possible causal role of pesticides

摘要

In a recent paper published in the journal (1), we reported results of an ecological multifactorial study showing that the growing incidence of prostate cancer in Martinique and Guadeloupe is probably caused by environmental factors, and have hypothesized in a second paper that among factors, spray of organochlorine pesticides might be causally involved (2). Table I indicates the different carcinogenic, mutagenic and/or reprotoxic (CMR) or presumed CMR pesticides used since 1955 in the two islands. Unlike that indicated in our first paper (1), aldrin and dieldrin are not rated as 2B carcino- gens but instead as group 3 in the IARC classification. Moreover, although our paper clearly showed an excess of prostate cancer in the South East part of Martinique (Fig. 1), unfortunately in the text, this area was mentioned as corresponding to the South-West of the island. These two necessary precisionsdo not change the basic conclusions of our paper, and the importance of its scientific message, since it clearly establishesfor the first time that prostate cancer may be an environmentaldisease.