IARC Carcinogenicity Classifications

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) acts as an intergovernmental agency that forms part of the World Health Organization (WHO) of the United Nations (UN). It has its main offices in Lyon, France, and conducts and coordinates research into the causes of cancer.

IARC Classification

IARC categorizes various substances and mixtures thereof into five categories based on its cancer-producing capability as far as available scientific studies indicate.

Group 1 Agents are scientifically confirmed carcinogenic to humans.

Group 2A Agents are probably carcinogenic to humans based on available studies.

Group 2B Agents are possibly carcinogenic to humans.

Group 3 Agents are probably not carcinogenic to humans. So far there is only one substance placed in this category--caprolactam.

Credibility

Critics of IARC have claimed that it has become susceptible to industry influence and suffers from lack of transparency.

In 2003, Lorenzo Tomatis (IARC director, 1982-1993) was barred from entering the IARC building after he accused IARC of "softpedaling" the risks of industrial chemicals [report] in a 2002 article. In the same year, 30 public scientists signed a letter targeting conflicts of interest and the lack of transparency in the agency.

In the 2002 article, "The IARC monographs program: changing attitudes towards public health," published in the International Journal for Occupational and Environmental Health, Tomatis reported that, contrary to the usual practice of not using "unpublished or confidential data, so readers could access the original information and thus follow the groups' reasoning," the 1994 change in IARC policy "appears to have attributed less importance to public health-oriented research and primary prevention, and the Monographs program seems to have lost some of its independence. Criteria for evaluating carcinogenicity related to mechanism(s) of action are not necessarily used as originally intended, to ensure better protection of public health."

Tomatis concluded that "evidence for carcinogenicity provided by the results of experimental bioassays has been disregarded on the basis of only suggested mechanistic hypotheses. If tests show those hypotheses to be incorrect, or if they do not account adequately for the wide range of susceptibility in humans, seriouis consequences for public health may follow."

A Way to Selective Use

As the question over IARC independence remain unsettled, any substance placed in the IARC Classification will be subject to doubt and the issue on safety becomes very uncertain. The only way to still effectively use this classification for health-risk prevention is to continue to avoid those listed under Groups 1 and 2, and disregard the substances under Group 3 as something indefinitely dangerous. Business interests normally can be found under Group 3, which can be used to support "unfounded" claims for non-carcinogenicity. That is a conservative approach in skirting around the question on credibility and independency of IARC.

The "Lungs" of Our Homes

As trees slowly disappear with growing urbanization, the Rooseveltian lungs are replaced with more dangerous electrical lungs at home, many of which can damage the genetic materials of the human lungs. FRANKLIN Roosevelt said: “A nation that destroys its soils destroys itself. Forests are the lungs of our land, purifying the air and giving fresh strength to our people.” In Cebu today, however, people may have given up “fresh strength” for the material conveniences of an urbanized province. Even the more far-flung towns in the province of Cebu have already shown signs of urbanization. And it will not be long when even forests will cease to be. Nonetheless, the “lungs” have been replaced with electric air fresheners, with all the varied approaches to freshen the air—at least in the cities and the suburbs. But four Japanese researchers—three from the Iwate University (Ueda, Morioka, Iwate) Department of Veterinary Medicine and one from the National Institute of Health Services (K...

Dealing with TURP

As we age, a lot of things we easily can do when we were younger get harder to do as our bodily systems start to show problems in functioning. That's the case with TURP; and if you add the inevitable side effects of drugs used in treating it, you can only imaging how difficult old age can be. A CERTAIN practice has been common in synthetic drug treatments (so common it may be considered a cliché). You start taking a prescription for one health problem and you end up having a new one. Of course that is not true for all synthetic medications. But given lack of long-term studies in most pharmaceutical drugs today, who knows what’s going to happen in the next 20 to 30 years after taking a particular regimen. In history, many drugs have been pulled out from shelves because they later turned out to be potential killers, if not already one. The classic case is that of finasteride, a treatment used against certain complications that transurethral ...

Sex Industry Weathers Financial Crises

Varmus Christopher Forbes.com 12/29/08 14:00:05 GMT The sex industry traces back to 500 B.C., when traders from the Greek port of Miletus sold olisbos, an early version of the dildo. Today, the business of sex (including pornography) now runs into the tens of billions of dollars. (No official estimates are available; Wall Street analysts don't tend to track this stuff.) And while print and video sales are ebbing, as more free adult content has become available online, sales of un-reproducible sexual aids are still healthy. "Of course, there's concern about the economy, but right now our sales are growing," says Michael Trygstad, founder of Wet, a lubricant manufacturer in Van Nuys, Calif. "We've grown 30% this year alone. We've had to completely automate our factories to meet the tremendous demand. People are deciding to stay at home and engage in inexpensive entertainment.'' Slick marketing--and the ability to shop anonymously online--helps, too...

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