Recent sharp increases in the breast cancer rate in Brazil are believed to be related to documented increased use of pesticides in the country during the 1980s. But we believe these preliminary data show strong enough correlations to generate further analysis and discussion.
Breast cancer is now the leading cause of cancer among Brazilian women.
The epidemiological data are still under development, but early studies such as this one suggested that researchers should pay serious attention to the problem. Dr. Koifman said the increase in breast cancer is particularly devastating in his country, where women do not have easy access to mammograms and their cancer tends to be picked up at very advanced stages. It's not the case in Brazil.