Blood Arsenic contamination causing Breast Cancer Risk in Exposed Population of Bihar

Yerravarapu Vamsi Krishna; Ch; rajeet Kumar; Arun Kumar

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Research Article - (2023) Volume 17, Issue 5

Blood Arsenic contamination causing Breast Cancer Risk in Exposed Population of Bihar

Yerravarapu Vamsi Krishna¹, Chandrajeet Kumar¹ and Arun Kumar²^*

¹Department of Biochemistry, YBN University, Ranchi, Jharkhand, India
²Mahavir Cancer Sansthan and Research Centre, Patna, Bihar, India

^*Correspondence: Arun Kumar, Mahavir Cancer Sansthan and Research Centre, Patna, Bihar, India, Tel: +91-9334740800, Email:

Received: 02-May-2023, Manuscript No. iphsj-23-13742; Editor assigned: 04-May-2023, Pre QC No. iphsj-23-13742 (PQ); Reviewed: 18-May-2023, QC No. iphsj-23-13742; Revised: 23-May-2023, Manuscript No. iphsj-23-13742(R); Published: 30-May-2023

Abstract

Groundwater arsenic poisoning in the recent times has posed serious health hazards to human beings. After the long-term exposure to arsenic, it has also caused disease of cancer in them. Breast cancer is the disease, which has become a fast-growing disease in the women in the present times. The exposed population is posed to hormonal imbalance due to arsenic poisoning which causes breast carcinogenesis.

In the present study, n=203 women subjects were voluntarily selected for breast cancer study and their blood samples were collected for arsenic estimation by Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer against the control female subjects n=100.

The study reveals that there is significant elevation in the blood arsenic concentration in the breast cancer patients. Out of n=203, female breast cancer patients, n=148 subject’s blood had significant blood arsenic concentration (72%), while n-55 subject’s blood arsenic concentration in normal levels (28%). The maximum arsenic concentration observed in the breast cancer patient was 1620μg/L, which is very significant. Moreover, the control female subjects didn’t have any significant blood arsenic concentration, as only n=03 subjects had very mild increased blood arsenic concentration.

In the state of Bihar, the exposed women population due to prolonged arsenic poisoning develop hormonal imbalance in their body. Due to elevated estrogen hormone, there is significant stress on the other regulated hormones such as prolactin. This elevated prolactin for long duration causes formation of lumps in the breast. The untreated breast lumps causes inflammation in the breast lobules, which in long duration time of 10-15 years gets converted into to malignant, which is the major cause of the breast carcinogenesis. Hence, the elevated arsenic levels are associated with the linkage between arsenic and breast cancer carcinogenesis.

Keywords

Breast Cancer; Blood Arsenic Contamination; Gangetic Plains; Hormonal Imbalance

Introduction

In the entire world, about 300 million people are exposed to arsenic poisoning and as such in India; about 70 million people are exposed. In Bihar, about 10 million people in the present scenario are exposed to arsenic through the drinking of contaminated water. In the Gangetic plains of Bihar, arsenic has caused serious health hazards in the exposed population of Bihar. Arsenic is moreover is also called the king of poison or, the poison of kings. The trivalent form of arsenic has got a special point of consideration because of its hazardous nature. According to WHO (world health organization), exposure of 10ppb is the maximum permissible limit for inorganic arsenic in the drinking water [1] The US EPA also set a limit for total inorganic arsenic in the drinking water that is 10μg/L [2] Not only drinking water but also food crops are becoming a major route for arsenic exposure due to the usage of arsenic-contaminated groundwater for irrigation. The source of arsenic is geogenic and it is present in the alluvial sediment of the Delta [3, 4]. Arsenic contamination of groundwater in southern Asia affects tens of millions of people. In the southern Asian lowlands, high population density coincides with dangerous levels of arsenic in the groundwater [5]. According to the latest estimates in 2014 by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), in India alone, more than 7 Crore people are exposed to the risk of arsenic in drinking water, most of them reside at the Ganga Basin. The most exposed countries globally are Argentina, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, China, Cambodia, Ghana, Greece, Hungary, India, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Mongolia, Nepal, New Zealand, Poland, Taiwan, Vietnam, and the USA.

Presently in Bihar, arsenic contamination in the groundwater is reported from 22 districts, threatening more than 10 million people in the state [6, 7]. The groundwater arsenic contamination in Bihar was first reported in Samaria Ojha Patti village of Shahpur, a block of Bhojpuri district in 2002 [8, 9] reported groundwater arsenic contamination in 50 blocks in 11 districts of Bihar. Recently, Singh and Ghosh (2012) estimated that there is a very high health risk in the arsenic-contaminated areas in the Maner block of Patna district. Moreover, the arsenic affected areas of Bihar, where the level of arsenic in drinking water exceeded 1000μg/L are Bhojpur, Patna, Samastipur, and Bhagalpur districts. More than 50μg/L of arsenic was detected in Vaishali, Saran, Begusarai, Khagaria, Munger, and Katihar districts [10-14].

Breast cancer disease in women in the recent times has increased many folds in the country. The common etiology of the disease is hereditary factors, reproductive factors, hormonal imbalance, women who discontinue breastfeeding etc. Moreover, in the recent times the environmental factors are also thought to be the causative agent behind the cause of breast cancer. The environmental pollutants could be pesticides, heavy metals and metalloids such as arsenic [15-20]. The breast cancer incidences in the recent times have increased many folds in the Gangetic plains of Bihar. Unfortunately, in this area arsenic poisoning in groundwater has also been reported severely. Hence, the present study tends to find out the association between the arsenic intoxication and breast cancer disease prevalence.

Materials and Methods

Ethical Approval: The study was approved from the Ethics Committee (IEC) of Mahavir Cancer Sansthan and Research Centre with the approved IEC No. MCS/Research/2019-2020/11, dated 08/01/2019. Informed consent was obtained from the studied breast cancer patients and the control subjects.

Location

The study was carried out in our institute itself in Mahavir Cancer Sansthan and Research Centre, Patna, Bihar, India. The study was carried out from January 2019 and was completed in November 2019.

Selection of the subjects for the study

A total of n= 100 control normal subjects were selected for the study, while for the cross-sectional design, n=203 subjects with pathologically confirmed breast disease were selected as the arsenic exposed group in the study.

Collection of blood samples for the study

Collection of blood samples: About 5ml of blood by volume were collected from the peripheral vein of the arm of the patients using the disposable syringes and then after were transferred to the heparinized vacationer as per the IUPAC guidelines [21]. The blood samples were stored in -80 degree centigrade for the further use.

Estimation of blood arsenic contamination

In the present study for the blood arsenic estimation, an volume of 0.5ml of whole blood sample were taken in 30ml conical flask (glass) and for overnight reaction to it, 5ml of HNO3 was added. The following day, the overnight left samples were digested on hotplate at 90oC-120oC, until the sample reached to 3ml volume. Then in the conical flask to the pre-digested solution, 5ml volume of HNO3:HClO4 (6:1) mixture was added. The samples were redigested on the hotplate at 90oC – 120oC until the volume of the solution reached to about 2ml. The final volume was adjusted to 10ml with distilled water after rinsing it with 1% HNO3 and was filtered through Whatman filter paper no.41 for the final reading on Graphite Furnace Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer (GFAAS).

Statistical Analysis

All the data were analysed using the software Graph Pad Prism 5.0 and the values were generated as Mean ± SEM. The data variables were also analysed statistically through one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) by using the Dennett’s test. The scattered plots were made using the statistical software SPSS- 16.0 using the linear regression analysis model as earlier carried out by [22, 23].

Results

Breast Cancer Patient’s Blood arsenic concentration: In the present study, in n= 203 breast cancer patient’s blood arsenic concentration was analysed with maximum arsenic concentration of 1620μg/L. The minimum value of arsenic concentration observed was 1.34μg/L (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Graph figure represents the distribution of blood arsenic concentration in female breast cancer patientÃ¢??s (n=203) (ANOVA-DunnettÃ¢??s Test, p<0.05).

Control Subjects Blood arsenic concentration: In the present study, in n= 100 control female subjects the blood arsenic concentration was analysed with maximum arsenic concentration of 13.7 μg/L. The minimum value of arsenic concentration observed was 0.56μg/L (Figure 2).

Figure 2: Graph figure represents the distribution of blood arsenic concentration in female subjects (n=100) (ANOVADunnettÃ¢??s Test, p<0.05).

Discussion

Arsenic in the recent times has caused serious health hazards among the exposed population. Female subjects are severely affected with arsenic poisoning as arsenic mimics the estrogen hormone, which in turn causes hormonal imbalance in the females. This leads to elevation in the levels of the hormones such as estrogen, luteinizing, prolactin and oxytocin. The elevated prolactin’s causes formation of breast lumps which in long run causes cancer of breast [24, 25]. Moreover, the AsIII is more toxic than the AsV due to instability of the compounds [26-31]. The arsenic is usually eliminated through the body via the metabolic organ’s liver and kidney.

In the present study, there is significant elevation in the blood arsenic concentration in the breast cancer patients. Out of n=203, female breast cancer patients, n=148 subject’s blood had significant blood arsenic concentration (72%), while n-55 subject’s blood arsenic concentration in normal levels (28%). The maximum arsenic concentration observed in the breast cancer patient was 1620μg/L, which is very significant. Moreover, the control female subjects didn’t have any significant blood arsenic concentration, as only n=03 subjects had very mild increased blood arsenic concentration. Recently, very high blood arsenic concentration and its association with cancer risk has been reported [32-34].

According to IARC, EPA and WHO, arsenic is considered as category- I carcinogen, causing cancer of Gallbladder, skin, lung, kidney, bladder and colorectal cancer (Kumar et al., 2023; Palma- Lara et al., 2015; Cuzick 2017. Arsenic poisoning due to prolonged exposure causes deregulated signaling pathways which causes breast carcinogenesis. This wrong signaling is involved in BCL- 2, PTEN, MLH, MMP-2 and Bax gene transformations which are significantly mutated due to arsenic toxicity [35-49].

In the state of Bihar, the exposed women population due to prolonged arsenic poisoning develop hormonal imbalance in their body. Due to elevated estrogen hormone, there is significant stress on the other regulated hormones such as prolactin. This elevated prolactin for long duration causes formation of lumps in the breast. The untreated breast lumps causes inflammation in the breast lobules, which in long duration time of 10-15 years gets converted into to malignant, which is the major cause of the breast carcinogenesis [50-57]. In the present study, there is significant arsenic contamination found in the blood samples of breast cancer, which denotes that it could be the agent which is causing the breast carcinogenesis [58-76].

Conclusion

The present study, significantly demonstrates the increase in the blood arsenic concentration in the 72% of studied breast cancer patients. Moreover, these patients were from the Gangetic plains of Bihar. The elevated arsenic levels associate the linkage between arsenic and breast cancer carcinogenesis. Furthermore, study is required to validate the association between arsenic and breast cancer.

Acknowledgement: The authors are thankful to YBN University and Mahavir Cancer Sansthan and Research Centre (MCSRC) for providing all necessary infrastructures required for this study. The financial assistance for the study was provided by the University itself.

Author contributions

Y.V.K, C.K and A.K conceptualized the entire work. Y.V.K is the principal author and had the major contributions in writing the manuscript but support was also provided by A.K. and C.K., literature search was done by Y.V.K., experimental work and data analysis were done by Y.V.K and A.K, final data interpretation was done by Y.V.K, C.K and A.K. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

References

Alatise OI, Schrauzer GN (2010) Lead exposure: a contributing cause of the current breast cancer epidemic in Nigerian women. Biol Trace Elem Res 136: 127-139.