Abstract IA23: Public engagement
Authors: Brody Julia G. 
Published: June 2022

Rapidly evolving science has identified numerous chemicals in everyday environments and consumer products that are plausibly linked to cancers. In 2009, the President’s Cancer Panel highlighted the scope of these potential risks and the opportunity to dramatically lift the burden of cancer by identifying and removing them. Chemicals linked to cancer include some pesticides, fragrances, flame retardants, ingredients in plastics and personal care products, and highly fluorinated substances (PFAS) applied to products from carpet to fast food wrappers. These compounds are routinely detected in people’s bodies and homes. While different levels of evidence are available for different chemicals, major scientific groups now agree that there is sufficient evidence to recommend exposure reduction as well as further research. To succeed, such efforts will require innovations in public engagement as well as basic science. Public engagement has been shown to increase the relevance of research questions, support recruitment and retention, and magnify impact. Innovative approaches include the Child Health and Development Studies participant advisory council, which represents three generations since the 1950s; the NIH Breast Cancer and the Environment Research Program, a network of laboratory scientists, epidemiologists, and community partners; and citizen science, such as the crowdsourced biomonitoring study Detox Me Action Kit. The NIH All of Us Study emphasizes the role of participants as partners. Environmental breast cancer research illustrates the transformative outcomes from community-engaged research over the past 25 years. For example, women’s questions about environmental causes led to testing for 100 endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDCs) in homes, drinking water, and people, revealing for the first time that consumer products are major sources of exposure (Rudel, 2003, 2010). As participants asked for their own results, report-back transformed conceptions of “pollution” and motivated personal changes and policy engagement. At the national level, US EPA refocused its priorities to include indoor air. Consumer awareness led to reformulation of products to avoid certain EDCs such as bisphenol A (BPA). High levels of flame retardants (FRs)—including chlorinated compounds similar to the potent carcinogen banned from children’s pajamas—prompted both further research and engagement. Advocates mobilized to change flammability standards, and the Consumer Product Safety Commission voted to ban halogenated FRs. Firefighters joined biomonitoring studies, and they assured policymakers that reducing toxics would not compromise safety. Universities changed procurement policies, and follow-up studies showed that FR-free furniture did reduce exposure. These successes from community-engaged research can be greatly expanded. Future studies can improve methods for engaging the public and promote effective dialogue about results with clinicians, policy makers, and the public.

Citation Format: Julia G. Brody. Public engagement [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Environmental Carcinogenesis: Potential Pathway to Cancer Prevention; 2019 Jun 22-24; Charlotte, NC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Can Prev Res 2020;13(7 Suppl): Abstract nr IA23.