Polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), also known as “forever chemicals,” are a family of man-made chemicals that is used in a wide array of common everyday use products. As a result it is found everywhere else including drinking water, with an estimated of 98% of adults having it in their blood.

A team of researchers from Los Angeles and Hawaii, following more than 200,000 residents from the Multiethnic Cohort Study, found the a strong association between PFAS and liver cancer. The study also allowed the researchers to analyze blood and tissue samples of the participants.

The investigators assessed pre-diagnosis blood samples from 50 people who developed liver cancer and 50 people who did not develop cancer.

They found that several types of PFAS were linked to liver cancer development, with the strongest link from perfluooctane sulfate (PFOS) where the top 10% of PFOS in the blood sample were 4.5 times more likely to develop liver cancer compared to those with the lowest level in their blood.

Further analysis found that PFOS altered various normal metabolic processes in the liver from gluocose metabolism to bile and protein metabolism leading to development of fatty-liver.

“We believe our work is providing important insights into the long-term health effects that these chemicals have on human health, especially with respect to how they can damage normal liver function,” said Lida Chatzi, one of the study’s principle investigators. “This study fills an important gap in our understanding of the true consequences of exposure to these chemicals.”

JA Goodrich et al. Exposure to perfluoroalkyl substances and risk of hepatocellular carcinoma in a multiethnic cohort. JHEP Reports (2022). DOI: 10.1016/j.jhepr.2022.100550