Printed on chlorine-free 100% PCW Recycled Paper, with Soy-Inks.
org
Center for Minority Health Addresses Health Disparities with
Programs and Partnerships
Continued from page 7
coordinated prostate cancer education
and screening programs in the barber-
shops. Now, the CMH and CEO plan to
partner with shops and salons to dissemi-
nate information on cancer and the envi-
ronment and on strategies to reduce one’s
individual risk of developing the disease.
Additional Tools to
Address Health Disparities
In 2003, the CMH received the subcontract
to operate the National Cancer Institute’s
(NCI) Atlantic Region Cancer Information
Service (CIS) for Western, Pennsylvania.
The CIS provides the latest and most ac-
curate cancer information for patients and
their families, the public, and health pro-
fessionals. This is accomplished through
its regional CIS Partnership Program pro-
vision of technical assistance as well as
program planning and implementation in
partnership with organizations reaching
underserved populations.
A Head’s Up on Lice
Continued From Page 11
holes with olive oil, the lice will die.
However, it takes awhile for them
to die, because head lice can shut
down their systems for hours.
Knowing how and when to use a
smothering program is essential.
Consult with your physician.
• The least expensive pumice-grade or
restaurant-grade olive oil works best.
• Mineral oil (including baby oil) is
not recommended because it can be
harmful to mucous membranes.
3 Do a reasonable job of cleaning the
infested person’s belongings and
home environment.
Please share this newsletter and be sure it is recycled.
12
This collaboration increases the capacity
of the CMH to fulfill its mission by inte-
grating CIS services and tools into its ex-
isting infrastructure of research, training,
and service. Two program planning tools,
Cancer Control PLANET—a web portal
on comprehensive cancer control plan-
ning and Consumer Health Profiles—a
collection of geographic, demographic,
and health and lifestyle data position the
CMH to help partners identify the cancer
burden in their community. CMH and CEO
will use these tools to further advance en-
vironmental issues.
Through its numerous partnerships and
programs, the Center for Minority Health
is making progress towards its mission
to eliminate racial and ethnic health
disparities.
• Thoroughly clean your child’s towels,
linens, clothes, hats and toys by
adding a few drops of essential oils
that repel or kill lice
• Wash in hot water and dry towels
and linens on very high heat
• Place toys and stuffed animals (that
cannot be cleaned) in plastic bags
and keep sealed for two weeks. This
will kill the lice.
• Replace all combs, brushes and
barrettes, or if possible boil items
in water.
• Vacuum carpets and cars
www.environmentaloncology.
Center for Environmental Oncology
Winter 2007
Volume 1 • Number 3
ADDITIONAL Winter 2007 • Volume 1 • Number 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTERNET RESOURCES Leaking Underground Storage Tanks:
an emerging public health risk
Beyond Pesticides
PAGE 3
www.beyondpesticides.org
Breast Cancer Fund
Maternal prenatal exposure to environmental
tobacco smoke harms babies during pregnancy
www.breastcancerfund.org
PAGE 5
Children’s Health and Environmental Coalition
Center for Minority Health Addresses Health
www.checnet.org
Disparities with Programs and Partnerships
Department of Environmental Quality PAGE 6
www.deq.state.mi.us/sid-web
How Many Light Bulbs Does it Take to
Environmental Working Group
Change the World?
www.ewg.org PAGE 8
Health Goods
A Heads Up on Lice
www.healthgoods.com PAGE 10
Health Care Without Harm Fleeing From Fleas
www.hcwh.org PAGE 11
OSHA
UPCOMING EVENTS
www.osha.gov
The American Head Lice Information Center ABOUT A HUNDRED YEARS AGO February 8, 2007
www.headliceinfo.com 12 noon – 1 PM
by: Devra L. Davis, PhD, MPH, Director, Center for Environmental Oncology of UPCI and
Environmental Health at the Movies,
The Collaborative on Health and the Environment Professor of Epidemiology, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh and
Blue Vinyl
www.healthandenvironment.org
Ronald B. Herberman, MD, Director, UPCI and UPMC Cancer Centers <The World’s First Toxic Comedy> (Winner Sundance
The CDC Film Festival, Emmy Award Nominee for Best
About a hundred years ago, scientists stud- of these materials, common to cigarette
www.cdc.gov Documentary and Best Research)
ied smoke by comparing the color of any smoke and smoke stacks, such as ben- Open to the Public
The E-House Company
plume they saw to various papers shaded zene, tars, cadmium, and butadiene, are UPMC Cancer Pavilion
www.ehousecompany.com
light gray to dark black. Today, we can rely well-known causes of cancer and other 5150 Centre Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA
The Green Guide Herberman Auditorium, Room 202
www.thegreenguide.com on newly devised electronic eyes to mea- diseases in workers who have been highly
Followed by Panel Discussion.
sure the gases and particles in smoke and exposed. Other emissions include minis-
The National Cancer Institute Free Healthy Lunch served.
www.nci.nih.gov/cancertopics identify things that can be thousands of cule amounts of polonium 210—concen- Call 412-623-1175 for more details
Safe 2 Use
times smaller than a human hair. trated levels of which were recently used Continued on page 2
www.safe2use.com Cigarette smoke remains the best-stud- to kill a former KGB agent in Britain.
Venture Outdoors ied and best-known source of smoke that This newsletter expands on our prior two
www.ventureoutdoors.org Citation
poses a public health threat at this time. issues (which you can access at www.
adapted in part from
But, many of the particles and gases that environmentaloncology.org) and explains
arise from the smoking of tobacco also oc- how important new advances in research 1. Davis, Devra, When Smoke Ran Like Water (New York:
Basic Books, A Member of the Perseus Book Groups, 2002)
cur at lower levels whenever fossil fuels are making it clear that regular exposures
www.whensmokeranlikewater.com
are burned to produce energy and fuel our to small amounts of benzene and other pol-
vehicles, or whenever accidents cause re- lutants can have grave consequences for
Photo on page 5 courtesy of Clean Air for Healthy Children and leases of these materials into the air. Some public health. Funding for this newletter is provided by the
Families (cigarette and smoke were added after photo was taken)
Continued on page 2 Highmark Foundation and the Heinz Endowments.
 www.environmentaloncology.org CEO-UPCI
About a Hundred Years Ago
Continued From Page 1
For nearly a quarter century, more than
6,000 peer-reviewed studies conducted
in more than thirty different countries
have consistently confirmed that regu-
UPCOMING EVENTS lar exposures to amounts of air pollution
Continued from page 1
that do not immediately kill people in the
February 8, 2007 United States eventually cause between
Pediatric Grand Rounds
40,000 and 100,000 people to die each
Dr. Michael Shannon of Children’s Hospital of Boston
year. In addition, such exposures sicken
Department of Emergency Medicine will give an
millions more with chronic coughs and
update on ‘Mercury’.
Presented by the Departments on Pediatrics and lung diseases, including cancer, and cost
Emergency Medicine of CHP the nation billions of dollars in work days
Shannon will also speak to the residents,
lost and damaged crops and materials.
later at 12 noon about Global Climate Change.
The good news is that air pollution levels,
February 13, 2007
as detected by conventional measures,
4-6 PM
have dropped dramatically—nearly fifty
A Talk by Tyrone Hayes, PhD
Assistant Professor, University of California, Berkeley fold—from the days when most urban
“From Silent Sprint to Silent Night: Hermaphroditic areas could be smelled before they could
Frogs, Breast Cancer and Pesticides.”
be seen. But the full story of what air pol-
Cooper Conference Center, Cooper classroom BC
lution means for our health remains to
Please call 412-623-1175 for further information.
be written.
February 14, 2007
12 -1 PM For instance, asthma rates have dou-
CME-accredited talk on ‘Radon’ by John Mallon,
bled despite the control of convention-
Radon Detection and Control
UPMC Cancer Pavilion ally measured pollutants from cars. And
5150 Centre Avenue, Pittsburgh PA what about unconventional, unmeasured
Herberman Conference Center, Room 201AB pollutants? Nobody is asking whether
Please call 412-623-1175 to pre-register
tiny, growing emissions from degrading
for healthy free lunch.
tires—since some chemicals in synthetic
March 12, 2007
rubber are highly allergenic—could play a
12 noon – 1 PM
Environmental Health at the Movies, role. Nor are questions being raised about
A Healthy Baby Girl whether other toxic pollutants or forms
UPMC Cancer Pavilion of environmental degradation account
5150 Centre Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA
for why young African American chil-
Herberman Auditorium, Room 202
dren have two to four times more asthma
Followed by a Panel Discussion.
Free Healthy Lunch Served. than whites.
Please call 412-623-1175 for more details.
Using American Cancer Society informa-
tion on half a million middle-class people
Continued on page 3
in 154 cities from 1982 to 1998, research-
ers in the Journal of the American Medical
Association in 2003 reported that the risk
of dying from lung cancer from regularly
Winter 2007 breathing air polluted with fine particu-
lates at levels found today in America was
Volume 1 • Number 3
about equal to that of living with a smoker.
2 Center for Environmental Oncology — University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute
In truth, warnings about this problem from
the public health community were provided
nearly 40 years ago. Warren Winkelstein,
working for the New York State Health
Department in 1968, looked at 21 areas in
and around Buffalo, New York, and found
that deaths from lung disease more than
doubled in the dirtiest areas, compared
to the cleanest. In 1955, Peter Stocks and
John Campbell interviewed men dying of
lung cancer in North Wales and Liverpool,
England, and learned that nonsmokers
living in the most polluted zones died at 10
times the rate of those living in the clean-
est areas. In 1958, a study of 187,783 Amer-
ican Army veterans by American Cancer
Society researchers Cuyler Hammond and
Harold Dorn found that the death rate from
lung cancer among those living in cities
was twice that of residents of rural areas.
What if this information had been made
widely available to folks deciding where
to live, and to city officials thinking about
what forms of transport and energy to
permit? What if, at any point in the past 48
years, these reports had been used as the
grounds for making the decisions about
public transport, light, heat and energy?
How many lives might have been saved?1
We cannot erase history or ignore a vast
body of research showing how burning
fossil fuels affects our local and global
health. Because our environment is so
much cleaner today, it’s easy to think of
pollution as something in the past, or af-
flicting some distant land we will never
see. This newsletter makes clear that
decisions we make today about how and
where we live and work affect our health
and that of our children for generations
to come.
CEO-UPCI
A Head’s Up on Lice
Continued From Page 10
How are lice treated?
Lice are difficult to remove because of
their size, life cycle, and their developed
resistance to insecticides. If not treated
correctly, they can be a persistent and
recurring problem. Getting rid of head
lice is a three-step process:
1 Kill all lice and nits. Beware of
medicated shampoos, creams, or
lotions. Familiar over-the-counter
brand names include: Rid, Nix,
Pronto and Clear. However, these
products contain pesticides
(pyrethrin, permethrin, lindane,
malathion and others), also known
as pediculicides, and may not be
advisable for babies, pregnant
women, or people with chronic
disease such as asthma, cancer,
or AIDS. Moreover, pesticides can
enter our soils and waterways and
ultimately end up in our food and
drinking water.
Lice can become resistant to repeated
treatments with pesticides. “Retail Phar-
macy News” offers an extensive list of
alternatives to toxic pesticides including
the following:
• “Not Nice To Lice” contains filtered
and purified water, and natural
enzyme cleaners including Protease,
Lipase, Cellulase and Amylase
• “LiceOut” is a non-toxic
water-based gel
2 Check for and remove all nits by
wet combing and manual nit picking
or by smothering with olive oil.
Wet combing and manual nit picking:
• Wash hair as normal, preferably with
a coconut-oil castile soap. Add a few
drops of tea tree oil and neem oil (the
Center for Environmental Oncology — University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute
soap and oils can be found in health
food stores) to the lathered hair and
apply conditioner liberally
• Rinse and rewash with this
same mixture
• After rewashing, do not rinse, but
wrap a towel around the head and
wait for 30 minutes
• Comb clean hair through with a
normal comb first
• Comb from roots along the complete
length of the hair with a nit-removing
comb, strand by strand, until all
nits are removed (this takes a while).
Dampen hair as needed.
• Work methodically over the whole
head for at least 30 minutes
• Wash and rinse the hair.
Once dry, check thoroughly for
any missed nits.
• Thoroughly clean the comb, hands,
bedding, and clothing. Pillows can
be placed in the freezer overnight.
You can comb a lice-repellant
essential oil through the hair.
The best choices of repellent
essential oils are tea tree, neem,
rosemary, lavender, eucalyptus,
and rose geranium. Add 10 drops
of essential oil to 1 oz. oil. Comb
through the hair. Or make a tea tree
oil shampoo by adding 10 drops of
tea tree oil to 1 oz. of shampoo.
• Repeat the process every few days
for at least two weeks
Smothering head lice with olive oil (after
washing and combing hair) is safe and
effective, but can be complicated.
• Lice breathe through holes in
their sides. When you cover these
Continued on page 12
www.environmentaloncology.org
FLEEING FROM FLEAS
Fleas are reddish brown to black, wingless external
parasites that are generally found on the skin of
cats, dogs and other animals. Although fleas prefer
domesticated animals, when supply is short, fleas
will bite humans or other animals.
What are symptoms of fleas?
• Some cat fleas are suspected of transmitting
murine typhus to humans; however,
primarily the bites are the major nuisance.
• Bites itch and appear as a central
red spot surrounded by a red halo.
• Some may have an allergic reaction to the bite.
How to manage fleas without using pesticides*
• Thoroughly clean pet beds and resting areas
both indoors and outdoors in hot soapy water
• Thoroughly and regularly vacuum floors, rugs,
carpets, upholstered furniture, and crevices
around corners to remove flea eggs and larvae
• Place vacuum bags in a sealed bag and throw
out since flea eggs and larvae can survive
inside the bags
• Use a special comb to remove fleas from your
pet and comb on regular intervals to reduce
occurrence of fleas
• Spray your pet daily with a 50/50 mixture of
white vinegar and water
• Use an enzyme shampoo on your pet
• Mix brewer’s yeast, or vitamin B or garlic
tablets in with pet food.
• Rub animal’s coat with fennel, rue,
and rosemary
• Place eucalyptus seeds and leaves where the
animal sleeps
*As a last resort and after consulting with a
veterinarian, use topical liquid spot treatment
Winter 2007
Volume 1 • Number 3
11
 www.environmentaloncology.org
INFORMATION ADAPTED
FROM THE FOLLOWING WEBSITES:
http://www.safe2use.com/nntl/sitemap-n.htm
http://www.getipm.com/notnicetolice/rpn-article.htm
http://www.care2.com/channels/solutions/home/372
http://www.liceout.com/
http://www.headliceinfo.com/faqs.htm
Winter 2007
Volume 1 • Number 3
10
CEO-UPCI
Maternal prenatal exposure to environmental tobacco smoke has the
same harmful effects on the baby as active smoking
Continued From Page 5
whose mothers smoked than in the blood
of those babies whose mothers neither
smoked nor were exposed to second-
ary smoke. To our surprise, the blood of
the babies whose mothers reported only
secondary exposure had just as many mu-
tant cells as those of the smoking moth-
ers, and the mutations were of the same
types, which were known to be caused by
the carcinogens in tobacco smoke. Other
researchers have recently reported that
developing babies are particularly sensi-
tive to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons,
PAHs, the major type of carcinogen found
in tobacco smoke.
To our dismay, our findings showed that
the blood of the children whose moth-
ers quit smoking during pregnancy also
had high numbers of mutant cells. This
raises the possibility that tobacco smoke
damages babies before the mother even
A Head’s Up on Lice
by: Marcia Barr, BSCE, BBEC, Co-Director, Environmental Assessment and Control,
Center for Environmental Oncology of UPCI
Head lice are tiny, wingless bugs about What are the symptoms?
the size of a sesame seed. They have six
legs with tiny claws and live only on hu-
man scalps.
How to tell if your child has lice…
• Lice can be seen with the naked eye
by separating hair strands with a fine
tooth comb.
• Adult lice are brownish tan in color
and their eggs (nits) are yellow or tan.
• Nits may look like dandruff but cannot
be brushed or shaken off.
• Nits are easier to locate than lice.
Center for Environmental Oncology — University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute
knows she is pregnant. Because of this,
we concluded that smoking, and second-
ary exposure to tobacco smoke, should be
avoided by all women who are “likely to
become pregnant.”
It is important to note, however, that all
of the women who quit smoking reported
ongoing exposure to secondary smoke, so
this might be the source of the increased
mutation. What these data indicate is
that it is not enough for a woman to stop
smoking. In order to protect her child
from the effects of secondary exposure,
a woman’s home and her workplace must
be made smoke-free as well. In particu-
lar, the father’s smoking during the baby’s
development may have harmful effects on
the health of the baby, effects that may
undermine the mother’s efforts to protect
the health of her child.
• Itching and scratching often occurs,
which may lead to small red bumps
or sores.
• Continued scratching may result
in bacterial infection, which may
require a topical or oral antibiotic.
How are lice spread?
• Lice are highly contagious, but
cannot fly or jump.
• Spreading occurs from head to
head contact, sharing of clothing,
towels, bed linens (pillows), combs
and brushes, and hats.
Continued on page 11
CEO-UPCI
Leaking underground storage tanks:
an emerging public health risk
by: Evelyn Talbott, DrPH, Professor of Epidemiology, GSPH and Jeanne Zborowski, PhD,
Senior Research Specialist, Department of Epidemiology, GSPH, University of Pittsburgh
After World War II, the automobile became
a fixture in the everyday life of Americans.
The exponential growth of automobile
sales resulted in the construction of thou-
sands of gasoline stations across the coun-
try (2.2 million tanks!) Bare steel tanks,
with an average tank life expectancy of 15
– 30 years, were installed underground to
store gasoline. Since the 1980’s, corrosion
and faulty installation and operation have
resulted in widespread ground water con-
tamination by gasoline (benzene, toluene,
ethylbenzene, xylenes (BTEX compounds)
and methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE).
Because fifty percent of all Americans rely
on groundwater for their drinking water,
these leaking underground storage tanks
pose a significant public health hazard.
Center for Environmental Oncology — University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute
UPCOMING EVENTS
Continued from page 2
Gasoline leaking from these tanks con-
taminates surrounding soil and ground-
water causing both environmental and
human health risks. Benzene, a compo-
nent of gasoline, is categorized by the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
as a proven human carcinogen and has
been linked in occupational studies to in-
creased cancer rates, particularly of the
blood forming organs (leukemia, lympho-
ma, etc). While workers who regularly use
benzene have been consistently found to
have a number of serious health problems
when compared to other workers without
such exposures, few studies have exam-
ined the health effects of a community ex-
posure to low-level benzene via gasoline
or other spills.
Continued on page 4
www.environmentaloncology.org
April 5, 2007
2 – 4 PM
Arlene Blum, renowned biophysical chemist,
environmentalist, mountaineer and author
‘The Dilemma of Flame Retardants: Science,
History, Politics’
UPMC Cancer Pavilion
5150 Centre Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA
Herberman Auditorium, Room 202A
April 6, 2007
5 – 7 PM, Byham Theater
In collaboration with Venture Outdoors Pittsburgh:
Presenting Arlene Blum, biochemist, mountaineer.
Best known for leading the first American—and all
women’s ascent—of Annapurna I, considered one of
the world’s most dangerous mountains. First woman to
attempt Mt. Everest. Author of Breaking Trail: A Climb-
ing Life” And “Annapurna: A Woman’s Place.”
Keynote speaker for the Banff Mountain Film Festival
Please call 412-623-1175 for further information.
April 11, 2007
12 noon – 1 PM
CME-accredited talk
Dr. Joe Suyama, Department of Emergency Medicine,
speaking on ‘Acute Effects of Toxic Exposures’
UPMC Cancer Pavilion
5150 Centre Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA
Herberman Auditorium, Room 202
Please call 412-623-1175 to pre-register
for free healthy lunch.
April 12, 2007
12 noon – 1 PM
CME-accredited talk
Dr. Jonathan Weinkle, Medicine-Pediatrics Resident
and CEO Medical Consultant, speaking on
‘Environmental Health Advocacy’
(Focusing on the American Academy of Pediatrics
Priorities in this area.)
Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh
Room B213-214
Free Healthy Lunch Served.
Please call 412-623-1175 for more details.
Winter 2007
Volume 1 • Number 3
3
 www.environmentaloncology.org
POTENTIAL RISKS
FROM GASOLINE EXPOSURE
For more than a century, gasoline fueled engines
have been used in cars, trucks, locomotives and
other motorized machinery.1 Engine exhausts contain
thousands of gases and particles and are considered
by the International Agency for Research on Cancer
of the World Health Organization to cause cancer.
A number of key chemicals in gasoline are known
to cause cancer or other serious health effects in
humans or in experimental animals, including benzene,
toluene, xylene, and methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE).2
Benzene
This solvent, which is also released by cigarette
smoke, is known to cause cancer in humans.
Long-term exposure to benzene in the workplace
can cause leukemia. Regularly breathing low
levels can damage the nervous system and cause
anemia and other problems of the blood.3
Toluene and Xylene
Although the link to cancer has not been
established, regular breathing of toluene causes
birth defects and brain damage, and xylene can
cause loss of consciousness and even death at
high levels. Importantly, in addition to the amount
of benzene already present in gasoline, the EPA
has determined that incomplete combustion of
xylene and toluene also significantly contributes
to the amount of benzene in auto exhaust. 3
MTBE
Many states, including Pennsylvania, Delaware,
Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, and Washington
D.C. have banned this gasoline additive, because of
its capacity to cause cancer and damage the nervous
system. MTBE from leaking underground storage
tanks is found in ground water in many regions. 3
Sources
1 http://www.inchem.org/documents/
iarc/vol46/46-01.html
2 http://www.uwm.edu/Dept/EHSRM/EHS/
SARA/MSDS/gasolineunleaded2001.pdf
3 http://www.epa.gov/
Winter 2007
Volume 1 • Number 3
4 Center for Environmental Oncology — University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute
CEO-UPCI
Leaking underground storage tanks: an emerging public health risk
Continued From Page 3
In 2001 and 2002, our team of investigators
from the University of Pittsburgh carried
out an epidemiological study specifically
examining the health effects of the Trangu-
ch Gasoline Spill. The Tranguch Gasoline
Spill has been characterized as a leakage
of 50,000-900,000 gallons of gasoline from
underground storage tanks in two munici-
palities located in northeastern Pennsyl-
vania. As a result of the spill, it is believed
that residents living within an EPA-defined
remediation area were chronically ex-
posed to low-levels of benzene sourcing
from the gasoline since at least 1990. In
response to community concerns, a study
examined 663 individuals from 275 house-
holds that had been exposed to benzene
to see whether they had a higher risk of
cancer and other diseases, compared to
others in Pennsylvania.
Using questionnaires, we collected per-
sonal information on health, jobs, and
residence. Cancers that were reported
in these questionnaires were verified by
physicians and cross-referenced with
the Pennsylvania Cancer Registry for the
period January 1, 1990 to December 31,
2000. We calculated the rate of cancer in
persons exposed to benzene from leak-
ing gasoline tanks and found that they
had nearly four times more leukemia than
other persons in the state. In fact, the risk
of all cancer in those exposed to benzene
was not higher, but the risk of leukemia, a
cancer known to be tied to benzene, was
greatly elevated. Four incident cases of
leukemia were reported (two acute my-
elogenous, one chronic myelogenous,
and one chronic lymphocytic). The resi-
dential location of the acute myelogenous
leukemia cases directly bordered the
more concentrated areas of gasoline as
projected by the US Army Corps of Engi-
neer and EPA.
The results of our University of Pittsburgh
study are consistent with what has been
observed in workers who regularly use
benzene but with eight hour exposures,
which are considerably greater. We have
found that chronic low-level benzene ex-
posure is tied with an increased risk for
leukemia among residents living near the
Tranguch spill site. While acute myeloge-
nous leukemia has been definitively linked
to benzene exposure in workers, our study
is one of the first to suggest such an as-
sociation in residents from environmental
exposures in their homes.
Scientists who worked on this study have
met with the community to explain these
results and suggested general precautions
to lower personal environmental exposure
to other sources of benzene, like cigarette
smoke and pumping gasoline as well as
housing cans of paint thinner, gasoline for
lawn mowers and paint in close proxim-
ity to their living areas. Recommendations
were made to public health agencies and
the community based on the study’s find-
ings. They included screening the exposed
community in the future to see whether
they develop other health problems. Pub-
lic health officials will be engaged in sur-
veillance in the spill-affected area in order
to determine the long-term impact of this
low-level exposure to gasoline.
Our research is one of very few studies
to extensively investigate exposures to
gasoline/benzene in a community setting.
Given the high prevalence of leaking un-
derground gasoline tanks in the United
States, this exposure is far from unique.
Therefore, it is important for communities
and public health agencies to cooperate
to assess and address health effects po-
tentially resulting from such leaks.
CEO-UPCI www.environmentaloncology.org
How many light bulbs does it take to change the world?
Continued From Page 8
local Jewish community to engage all of dioxide alone (.001 tons CO2 per kWh in an
us in awareness, advocacy and action to 8,000 hour timeframe) from entering our
conserve energy, reduce greenhouse gas atmosphere. (Source: Oak Ridge National
emissions, and promote energy legislation. Laboratory, The Impact of Environmental
Citations
A feature of this program (easily achievable Externality Requirements on Renewable
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compact_fluorescent_lamp
by each of us) is to change a few of your Energy, Oak Ridge, TN, July 1994). For
2. A 15-watt CFL produces an equivalent amount of light as a
bulbs to CFLs. To date, with just 50,000 more information, visit www.coejl.org/
60-watt incandescent bulb.
bulbs sold nationwide, the campaign climatechange.
3. Based on shipping weights found at Target.com.
has already kept 144,000 tons of carbon
4. Assuming plant is fueled by coal.
A LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT OF INCANDESCENT BULBS 5. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4922496.stm
VERSUS COMPACT FLUORESCENT LAMPS
6. Analysis based on hours of light produced (8,000 hours =
8,000 hour timeframe1 60-watt 15-watt 1 CFL = 6 incandescent bulbs). Therefore, six
Incandescent Compact Fluorescent2 incandescent bulbs must be compared with one CFL.
Purchase and replacement 6*$0.50 = $3.00 $2. 25 7. 0.00006452 lbs/1,000 kWh, varies regionally depending on
costs (Includes energy to coal content.
manufacture the bulbs and
lamps)
Energy required to manu- 1 kWh/bulb 4 kWh/bulb
facture the bulb4,5
Operational costs per 8,000 $48.00 $12.00
hours of light (using a cost
of $.10 per kilowatt hour)
Transportation costs per
6*$0.02/pound*2 ounces3 $0.02/pound*4 ounces3
8,000 hours of light = $0.015 = $0.005
Disposal costs per 8,000 6*$0.02/pound*2 ounces3 $0.02/pound*4 ounces3
hours of light = $0.015 = $0.005
Life Cycle Cost6 $51.03/ 6 bulbs $14.26/ bulb
Mercury emissions result- 0.006 ounces/6,000 bulbs 0.004 ounces/1,000 bulbs
ing from bulb manufac-
ture4,7
Mercury emissions result-
0.5 ounces/ 6,000 bulbs 0.12 ounces/ 1,000 bulbs
ing from generating elec-
tricity to power the bulb4,7
Non-monetized Mer- 0.506 ounces of mercu- 0.124 ounces of mercu-
cury Only Environmental ry/6,000 bulbs ry/1,000 bulbs
Burden6
Winter 2007
Volume 1 • Number 3
Center for Environmental Oncology — University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute 9
 www.environmentaloncology.org CEO-UPCI CEO-UPCI www.environmentaloncology.org

How many light bulbs does it take to

change the world?
by: Marcia Barr, BSCE, BBEC, Co-Director, Environmental Assessment and Control, Center
for Environmental Oncology of UPCI, and Devra Davis, PhD, MPH, Director, Center for
Environmental Oncology of UPCI
An old joke goes: “How many psychiatrists watt CFL produces the same amount of “Studies have shown that mothers
does it take to change a light bulb?” The light (lumens) as a 60-watt incandescent who live in zones with higher air
answer is simple, “None. The light bulb bulb. Using a cost of $.10 per kilowatt
has to want to change itself.” Today, hour, the cost to operate a single 15- pollution have babies with smaller
the Pittsburgh region can save millions watt CFL for 8,000 hours is $12 while the heads and lower birth weights.”
of dollars, if each one of us would swap cost to operate six 60-watt incandescent
a single incandescent light bulb in our bulbs for the same length of time is four Perera, F. P., Rauh, V., Tsai, Wei-Yann, Kinney, P., Camann,
home for a single compact fluorescent times that amount ($48). Now consider the D., Barr, D., Bernert, T., Garfinkel, R., Tu, Yi-Hsuan, Diaz, D.
lamp (CFL). Although they initially cost environmental impact. If we assume that Dietrich, J., and Whyatt, R. M. Effects of Transplacental
Exposure to Environmental Pollutants on Birth Outcomes
more to buy, CFLs cost much less to use the power plant producing the electricity
in a Multiethnic Population. Children’s Health. February
because they require one-fourth as much for your home is also fueled by coal, that 2003, Environmental Health Perspectives. Volume 111,
electricity to produce the same amount of power plant will burn more coal and emit Maternal prenatal exposure to environmental Number 2: 201-205
lighting, and last about six times longer more particulates, greenhouse gases,
tobacco smoke harms babies during pregnancy
than incandescents. This means that the and mercury to power an incandescent
by: Stephen G. Grant, PhD, Center for Environmental Oncology of UPCI
bulb than a CFL. Even though compact
total cost of using CFLs over their life cycle
Before becoming pregnant, many women It is well known that exposures such as to-
is much cheaper than incandescent light fluorescent lamps contain low levels of
who smoke decide that they will quit if and
bacco smoke can cause damage to DNA,
bulbs. Refer to the below table titled “A life
mercury (while incandescents contain no
when they become pregnant. Whatever the genetic material, which, if it is not
Cycle Assessment of Incandescent Bulbs mercury), the use of CFLs results in less
their thoughts on the dangers of smoking repaired, becomes an irreversible “muta-
Versus Compact Fluorescent Lamps.” contamination because they last longer
overall, they prefer not to take a chancetion.” Accumulation of such mutations
The math is simple. CFLs are typically and use less electricity to produce light. with the health of their baby. They recog-
occurs with age and leads to the diseases
guaranteed to last for 8,000 hours1. Since Although CFLs are double the weight of nize that the problems that arise during the
of aging, such as cancer. Thus, a child
an incandescent bulb is only guaranteed incandescents, they are 3 times cheaper development of a child are likely to havewho experiences mutagenic exposure in
for 1,250 hours on average, approximately to transport and dispose of (using a factor the womb might begin life with a greater
life-long ramifications for his or her well-
6 incandescent bulbs (8,000/1,250) have of 6 for bulb longevity described above and being. lifetime risk of developing cancer or at a
to be bought to provide the same amount assuming costs of about $0.02 per pound
In a recent study, performed under the greater risk of developing cancer at an
of lighting as a single CFL. Because most for transportation and $0.02 per pound for
auspices of the Center for Environmental early age.
of our local electricity comes from coal, disposal). If every household in our city
Oncology, researchers examined cells The number of mutated cord blood cells
when we make this switch we do much were to replace just one incandescent
from the cord blood of babies who were and the type of mutations they carried
more than save money on our energy bills. bulb with a CFL that was on continuously,
born to mothers who either: were determined by a well-established
We reduce the amount of coal that needs we would save more than $12 million
1) smoked throughout pregnancy, testing procedure using a gene that should
to be burned to keep our homes, schools, dollars annually, chiefly in the form of
have no associated health effects.
and businesses lit, and thereby lower reduced costs for electricity. 2) quit smoking when they Citation
the amount of air pollution in the form At this time of year, when daylight is became pregnant, or Cells with mutations were found in blood
Grant, S.G. (2005) Qualitatively and quantitatively similar effects
of ultra-fine particulates, mercury, and scarce, the holidays of Christmas, samples from all of the babies in the study,
3) were non-smokers and also of active and passive maternal tobacco smoke exposure on in
greenhouse gases. because a background frequency of DNA utero mutagenesis at the HPRT locus. BMC Pediatrics 5: 20
Kwanzaa and Hanukah feature lighting as reported whether they had significant
damage and mutation is unavoidable.
Now let’s look at the cost to use the bulb. part of their celebrations. A nationwide exposure to secondary (environmental)
However, nearly twice as many mutated
CFLs use about one quarter of the power campaign, “A light among nations” is tobacco smoke (whether they lived or
cells were found in the blood of the babies
Winter 2007 of an incandescent. In other words, a 15- being spearheaded in Pittsburgh by the worked with smokers). Winter 2007
Volume 1 • Number 3 Continued on page 10 Volume 1 • Number 3
Continued on page 9

8 Center for Environmental Oncology — University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute Center for Environmental Oncology — University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute 5
 www.environmentaloncology.org
BLUE-COLLAR WORK &
INCREASED CANCER RISK
Do higher exposures to certain workplaces and
environments account in part for the fact that some
types of cancer are higher in African Americans?
• 1 in 8 Americans is African American.1
• African American men are twice as likely
to have increased cancer incidence from
occupational exposures as White men.
• 1 in 5 African Americans works in household
cleaning and building services, or laundering
and dry-cleaning.
• Compared with the general U.S. population,
dry-cleaning workers are at an increased risk
for cancers of the esophagus, larynx, lung,
and cervix. They are also at an increased risk
for cancer mortality, in general.
Continued on page 7
Winter 2007
Volume 1 • Number 3
6 Center for Environmental Oncology — University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute
CEO-UPCI
Stephen Thomas, PhD (standing, right) and Tom Boyd, shop owner, (standing, left)
with customer at Big Tom’s Barber Shop.
Center for Environmental Oncology and
the Center for Minority Health Join Forces to
Eliminate Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities
by: Lora Ann Bray, BS, CCRP, Partnership Program Coordinator, NCI Cancer Information
Service; Mario C. Browne, MPH, CAC, Project Director, CMH; and Stephen B. Thomas,
Ph.D., FAAHB, Director, Center for Minority Health, Philip Hallen Professor of Community
Health and Social Justice, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh.
In 2004, Devra L. Davis, PhD, MPH, Direc-
tor, Center for Environmental Oncology of
UPCI and Dr. Stephen Thomas, Director of
the Center for Minority Health (CMH) in the
Graduate School of Public Health (GSPH)
at the University of Pittsburgh launched
an innovative collaborative partnership
focused on the elimination of racial and
ethnic health disparities. According to
the 2000 U.S. Census, approximately 30
percent of the population belongs to a ra-
cial or ethnic minority group. By the year
2030, that number will grow to approxi-
mately 40 percent of the U.S. population.
While life expectancy and overall health
of the American people have improved
over the past 50 years, racial and ethnic
minorities continue to suffer from a dis-
proportionate burden of premature illness
and death compared to whites. According
to federal statistics, for example, the in-
fant death rate among African Americans
is still more than double that of whites;
Vietnamese women suffer from cervical
cancer at nearly five times the rate for
white women; Hispanics accounted for 20
percent of the new cases of tuberculosis;
and American Indians and Alaska Natives
have disproportionately high death rates
from unintentional injuries and suicide.
Closing the health disparity gap will re-
quire a multidisciplinary approach that ad-
dresses both individual and environmental
factors associated with chronic diseases
such as cancer, diabetes and cardiovas-
cular disease. Increasing access to health
care and improving prevention, screening,
and treatment services for all Americans
is paramount to eliminating racial and eth-
nic health disparities. This is the context in
Continued on page 7
CEO-UPCI
Center for Minority Health Addresses Health Disparities with
Programs and Partnerships
Continued from page 6
which Drs. Davis and Thomas made their
commitment to make the African Ameri-
can community a partner in health promo-
tion and disease prevention.
Designated as a center of excellence in
health by the National Institutes of Health,
the CMH is at the forefront of program-
ming to help reduce health disparities.
Following the directive of the U.S. De-
partment of Health and Human Services
(DHHS) Healthy People 2010 initiative, the
CMH provides community education in
the disease areas of cancer, immuniza-
tion, mental health, HIV/AIDS, diabetes,
and heart disease.
To further investigate racial disparities
in breast cancer incidence, researchers
from the CEO and from Pitt’s GSPH, ana-
lyzed breast cancer incidence among Af-
rican American and white women in the
United States from 1975 to 2002. This study
found that the chances of getting breast
cancer in newer generations are about 21
percent higher in whites and 41 percent
higher in African Americans than in pre-
vious generations of women. According
to researchers at the Center for Environ-
mental Oncology of UPCI., these findings
suggest that significant resources and re-
1.)Bottom left picture - Mario Browne, MPH,
(in blue shirt) and Staff members from
UPMC Emergency Services Dept. at Willie
Tee’s Barber Shop.
Center for Environmental Oncology — University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute
www.environmentaloncology.org
search need to be directed toward under-
standing why younger African American
women are at a significantly higher risk of Continued from page 6
developing breast cancer.
• Blue-collar women exposed to solvents in
Although there are many potential factors the chemical and pharmaceutical industries
that could contribute to the difference in experience increased risk of breast cancer.
breast cancer incidence among African
• 1 in 3 African Americans works as textile
American and white women, environ-
pressing machine operators, bus drivers, or
mental hormones are strong candidates,
barbers.
according to Dr. Davis. In particular, cer-
tain direct hormonal additives, along with • Women employed in the paper and pulp
hormone-mimicking compounds, such as industry have shown increased rates of ovarian,
bisphenol A, a widely used plasticizer, lung and bladder cancer.
and preservatives, called parabens, are
• Numerous studies have demonstrated that
frequently used in personal care products
used in the African American community,
diesel truck drivers are approximately 50% more
likely to get lung cancer than are other workers.
including deodorants, antiperspirants and
many cosmetic, food and pharmaceuti- • A 2003 study demonstrated an increased risk
cal products. These materials have been among male hairdressers for cancers of the
shown to accelerate breast cancer cell upper aerodigestive tract, lung, and colon;
growth in cell cultures. among female hairdressers, an increased risk
for cancers of the pancreas, lung, cervix, and
Partnering with the African American
skin (especially the scalp and neck) was noted.
Community for Health Promotion & Dis-
ease Prevention 1. List of workplace and cancer statistics derived from the
The CMH has established a trusted rela- website: http://iccnetwork.org/cancerfacts/cfs8.htm
tionship with several African American
owned barbershops and beauty salons
in Pittsburgh. Through its H.A.I.R. (Health
Advocates In Reach) initiative, the CMH
2.)Bottom right picture- Dr. Chisara Asomugha,
Pediatrician, taking community resident’s blood
pressure at Wade’s Barber Shop.
Winter 2007
Volume 1 • Number 3
Continued on page 12
7
 www.environmentaloncology.org
BLUE-COLLAR WORK &
INCREASED CANCER RISK
Do higher exposures to certain workplaces and
environments account in part for the fact that some
types of cancer are higher in African Americans?
• 1 in 8 Americans is African American.1
• African American men are twice as likely
to have increased cancer incidence from
occupational exposures as White men.
• 1 in 5 African Americans works in household
cleaning and building services, or laundering
and dry-cleaning.
• Compared with the general U.S. population,
dry-cleaning workers are at an increased risk
for cancers of the esophagus, larynx, lung,
and cervix. They are also at an increased risk
for cancer mortality, in general.
Continued on page 7
Winter 2007
Volume 1 • Number 3
6 Center for Environmental Oncology — University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute
CEO-UPCI
Stephen Thomas, PhD (standing, right) and Tom Boyd, shop owner, (standing, left)
with customer at Big Tom’s Barber Shop.
Center for Environmental Oncology and
the Center for Minority Health Join Forces to
Eliminate Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities
by: Lora Ann Bray, BS, CCRP, Partnership Program Coordinator, NCI Cancer Information
Service; Mario C. Browne, MPH, CAC, Project Director, CMH; and Stephen B. Thomas,
Ph.D., FAAHB, Director, Center for Minority Health, Philip Hallen Professor of Community
Health and Social Justice, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh.
In 2004, Devra L. Davis, PhD, MPH, Direc-
tor, Center for Environmental Oncology of
UPCI and Dr. Stephen Thomas, Director of
the Center for Minority Health (CMH) in the
Graduate School of Public Health (GSPH)
at the University of Pittsburgh launched
an innovative collaborative partnership
focused on the elimination of racial and
ethnic health disparities. According to
the 2000 U.S. Census, approximately 30
percent of the population belongs to a ra-
cial or ethnic minority group. By the year
2030, that number will grow to approxi-
mately 40 percent of the U.S. population.
While life expectancy and overall health
of the American people have improved
over the past 50 years, racial and ethnic
minorities continue to suffer from a dis-
proportionate burden of premature illness
and death compared to whites. According
to federal statistics, for example, the in-
fant death rate among African Americans
is still more than double that of whites;
Vietnamese women suffer from cervical
cancer at nearly five times the rate for
white women; Hispanics accounted for 20
percent of the new cases of tuberculosis;
and American Indians and Alaska Natives
have disproportionately high death rates
from unintentional injuries and suicide.
Closing the health disparity gap will re-
quire a multidisciplinary approach that ad-
dresses both individual and environmental
factors associated with chronic diseases
such as cancer, diabetes and cardiovas-
cular disease. Increasing access to health
care and improving prevention, screening,
and treatment services for all Americans
is paramount to eliminating racial and eth-
nic health disparities. This is the context in
Continued on page 7
CEO-UPCI
Center for Minority Health Addresses Health Disparities with
Programs and Partnerships
Continued from page 6
which Drs. Davis and Thomas made their
commitment to make the African Ameri-
can community a partner in health promo-
tion and disease prevention.
Designated as a center of excellence in
health by the National Institutes of Health,
the CMH is at the forefront of program-
ming to help reduce health disparities.
Following the directive of the U.S. De-
partment of Health and Human Services
(DHHS) Healthy People 2010 initiative, the
CMH provides community education in
the disease areas of cancer, immuniza-
tion, mental health, HIV/AIDS, diabetes,
and heart disease.
To further investigate racial disparities
in breast cancer incidence, researchers
from the CEO and from Pitt’s GSPH, ana-
lyzed breast cancer incidence among Af-
rican American and white women in the
United States from 1975 to 2002. This study
found that the chances of getting breast
cancer in newer generations are about 21
percent higher in whites and 41 percent
higher in African Americans than in pre-
vious generations of women. According
to researchers at the Center for Environ-
mental Oncology of UPCI., these findings
suggest that significant resources and re-
1.)Bottom left picture - Mario Browne, MPH,
(in blue shirt) and Staff members from
UPMC Emergency Services Dept. at Willie
Tee’s Barber Shop.
Center for Environmental Oncology — University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute
www.environmentaloncology.org
search need to be directed toward under-
standing why younger African American
women are at a significantly higher risk of Continued from page 6
developing breast cancer.
• Blue-collar women exposed to solvents in
Although there are many potential factors the chemical and pharmaceutical industries
that could contribute to the difference in experience increased risk of breast cancer.
breast cancer incidence among African
• 1 in 3 African Americans works as textile
American and white women, environ-
pressing machine operators, bus drivers, or
mental hormones are strong candidates,
barbers.
according to Dr. Davis. In particular, cer-
tain direct hormonal additives, along with • Women employed in the paper and pulp
hormone-mimicking compounds, such as industry have shown increased rates of ovarian,
bisphenol A, a widely used plasticizer, lung and bladder cancer.
and preservatives, called parabens, are
• Numerous studies have demonstrated that
frequently used in personal care products
used in the African American community,
diesel truck drivers are approximately 50% more
likely to get lung cancer than are other workers.
including deodorants, antiperspirants and
many cosmetic, food and pharmaceuti- • A 2003 study demonstrated an increased risk
cal products. These materials have been among male hairdressers for cancers of the
shown to accelerate breast cancer cell upper aerodigestive tract, lung, and colon;
growth in cell cultures. among female hairdressers, an increased risk
for cancers of the pancreas, lung, cervix, and
Partnering with the African American
skin (especially the scalp and neck) was noted.
Community for Health Promotion & Dis-
ease Prevention 1. List of workplace and cancer statistics derived from the
The CMH has established a trusted rela- website: http://iccnetwork.org/cancerfacts/cfs8.htm
tionship with several African American
owned barbershops and beauty salons
in Pittsburgh. Through its H.A.I.R. (Health
Advocates In Reach) initiative, the CMH
2.)Bottom right picture- Dr. Chisara Asomugha,
Pediatrician, taking community resident’s blood
pressure at Wade’s Barber Shop.
Winter 2007
Volume 1 • Number 3
Continued on page 12
7
 www.environmentaloncology.org CEO-UPCI CEO-UPCI www.environmentaloncology.org

How many light bulbs does it take to

change the world?
by: Marcia Barr, BSCE, BBEC, Co-Director, Environmental Assessment and Control, Center
for Environmental Oncology of UPCI, and Devra Davis, PhD, MPH, Director, Center for
Environmental Oncology of UPCI
An old joke goes: “How many psychiatrists watt CFL produces the same amount of “Studies have shown that mothers
does it take to change a light bulb?” The light (lumens) as a 60-watt incandescent who live in zones with higher air
answer is simple, “None. The light bulb bulb. Using a cost of $.10 per kilowatt
has to want to change itself.” Today, hour, the cost to operate a single 15- pollution have babies with smaller
the Pittsburgh region can save millions watt CFL for 8,000 hours is $12 while the heads and lower birth weights.”
of dollars, if each one of us would swap cost to operate six 60-watt incandescent
a single incandescent light bulb in our bulbs for the same length of time is four Perera, F. P., Rauh, V., Tsai, Wei-Yann, Kinney, P., Camann,
home for a single compact fluorescent times that amount ($48). Now consider the D., Barr, D., Bernert, T., Garfinkel, R., Tu, Yi-Hsuan, Diaz, D.
lamp (CFL). Although they initially cost environmental impact. If we assume that Dietrich, J., and Whyatt, R. M. Effects of Transplacental
Exposure to Environmental Pollutants on Birth Outcomes
more to buy, CFLs cost much less to use the power plant producing the electricity
in a Multiethnic Population. Children’s Health. February
because they require one-fourth as much for your home is also fueled by coal, that 2003, Environmental Health Perspectives. Volume 111,
electricity to produce the same amount of power plant will burn more coal and emit Maternal prenatal exposure to environmental Number 2: 201-205
lighting, and last about six times longer more particulates, greenhouse gases,
tobacco smoke harms babies during pregnancy
than incandescents. This means that the and mercury to power an incandescent
by: Stephen G. Grant, PhD, Center for Environmental Oncology of UPCI
bulb than a CFL. Even though compact
total cost of using CFLs over their life cycle
Before becoming pregnant, many women It is well known that exposures such as to-
is much cheaper than incandescent light fluorescent lamps contain low levels of
who smoke decide that they will quit if and
bacco smoke can cause damage to DNA,
bulbs. Refer to the below table titled “A life
mercury (while incandescents contain no
when they become pregnant. Whatever the genetic material, which, if it is not
Cycle Assessment of Incandescent Bulbs mercury), the use of CFLs results in less
their thoughts on the dangers of smoking repaired, becomes an irreversible “muta-
Versus Compact Fluorescent Lamps.” contamination because they last longer
overall, they prefer not to take a chancetion.” Accumulation of such mutations
The math is simple. CFLs are typically and use less electricity to produce light. with the health of their baby. They recog-
occurs with age and leads to the diseases
guaranteed to last for 8,000 hours1. Since Although CFLs are double the weight of nize that the problems that arise during the
of aging, such as cancer. Thus, a child
an incandescent bulb is only guaranteed incandescents, they are 3 times cheaper development of a child are likely to havewho experiences mutagenic exposure in
for 1,250 hours on average, approximately to transport and dispose of (using a factor the womb might begin life with a greater
life-long ramifications for his or her well-
6 incandescent bulbs (8,000/1,250) have of 6 for bulb longevity described above and being. lifetime risk of developing cancer or at a
to be bought to provide the same amount assuming costs of about $0.02 per pound
In a recent study, performed under the greater risk of developing cancer at an
of lighting as a single CFL. Because most for transportation and $0.02 per pound for
auspices of the Center for Environmental early age.
of our local electricity comes from coal, disposal). If every household in our city
Oncology, researchers examined cells The number of mutated cord blood cells
when we make this switch we do much were to replace just one incandescent
from the cord blood of babies who were and the type of mutations they carried
more than save money on our energy bills. bulb with a CFL that was on continuously,
born to mothers who either: were determined by a well-established
We reduce the amount of coal that needs we would save more than $12 million
1) smoked throughout pregnancy, testing procedure using a gene that should
to be burned to keep our homes, schools, dollars annually, chiefly in the form of
have no associated health effects.
and businesses lit, and thereby lower reduced costs for electricity. 2) quit smoking when they Citation
the amount of air pollution in the form At this time of year, when daylight is became pregnant, or Cells with mutations were found in blood
Grant, S.G. (2005) Qualitatively and quantitatively similar effects
of ultra-fine particulates, mercury, and scarce, the holidays of Christmas, samples from all of the babies in the study,
3) were non-smokers and also of active and passive maternal tobacco smoke exposure on in
greenhouse gases. because a background frequency of DNA utero mutagenesis at the HPRT locus. BMC Pediatrics 5: 20
Kwanzaa and Hanukah feature lighting as reported whether they had significant
damage and mutation is unavoidable.
Now let’s look at the cost to use the bulb. part of their celebrations. A nationwide exposure to secondary (environmental)
However, nearly twice as many mutated
CFLs use about one quarter of the power campaign, “A light among nations” is tobacco smoke (whether they lived or
cells were found in the blood of the babies
Winter 2007 of an incandescent. In other words, a 15- being spearheaded in Pittsburgh by the worked with smokers). Winter 2007
Volume 1 • Number 3 Continued on page 10 Volume 1 • Number 3
Continued on page 9

8 Center for Environmental Oncology — University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute Center for Environmental Oncology — University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute 5
 www.environmentaloncology.org
POTENTIAL RISKS
FROM GASOLINE EXPOSURE
For more than a century, gasoline fueled engines
have been used in cars, trucks, locomotives and
other motorized machinery.1 Engine exhausts contain
thousands of gases and particles and are considered
by the International Agency for Research on Cancer
of the World Health Organization to cause cancer.
A number of key chemicals in gasoline are known
to cause cancer or other serious health effects in
humans or in experimental animals, including benzene,
toluene, xylene, and methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE).2
Benzene
This solvent, which is also released by cigarette
smoke, is known to cause cancer in humans.
Long-term exposure to benzene in the workplace
can cause leukemia. Regularly breathing low
levels can damage the nervous system and cause
anemia and other problems of the blood.3
Toluene and Xylene
Although the link to cancer has not been
established, regular breathing of toluene causes
birth defects and brain damage, and xylene can
cause loss of consciousness and even death at
high levels. Importantly, in addition to the amount
of benzene already present in gasoline, the EPA
has determined that incomplete combustion of
xylene and toluene also significantly contributes
to the amount of benzene in auto exhaust. 3
MTBE
Many states, including Pennsylvania, Delaware,
Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, and Washington
D.C. have banned this gasoline additive, because of
its capacity to cause cancer and damage the nervous
system. MTBE from leaking underground storage
tanks is found in ground water in many regions. 3
Sources
1 http://www.inchem.org/documents/
iarc/vol46/46-01.html
2 http://www.uwm.edu/Dept/EHSRM/EHS/
SARA/MSDS/gasolineunleaded2001.pdf
3 http://www.epa.gov/
Winter 2007
Volume 1 • Number 3
4 Center for Environmental Oncology — University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute
CEO-UPCI
Leaking underground storage tanks: an emerging public health risk
Continued From Page 3
In 2001 and 2002, our team of investigators
from the University of Pittsburgh carried
out an epidemiological study specifically
examining the health effects of the Trangu-
ch Gasoline Spill. The Tranguch Gasoline
Spill has been characterized as a leakage
of 50,000-900,000 gallons of gasoline from
underground storage tanks in two munici-
palities located in northeastern Pennsyl-
vania. As a result of the spill, it is believed
that residents living within an EPA-defined
remediation area were chronically ex-
posed to low-levels of benzene sourcing
from the gasoline since at least 1990. In
response to community concerns, a study
examined 663 individuals from 275 house-
holds that had been exposed to benzene
to see whether they had a higher risk of
cancer and other diseases, compared to
others in Pennsylvania.
Using questionnaires, we collected per-
sonal information on health, jobs, and
residence. Cancers that were reported
in these questionnaires were verified by
physicians and cross-referenced with
the Pennsylvania Cancer Registry for the
period January 1, 1990 to December 31,
2000. We calculated the rate of cancer in
persons exposed to benzene from leak-
ing gasoline tanks and found that they
had nearly four times more leukemia than
other persons in the state. In fact, the risk
of all cancer in those exposed to benzene
was not higher, but the risk of leukemia, a
cancer known to be tied to benzene, was
greatly elevated. Four incident cases of
leukemia were reported (two acute my-
elogenous, one chronic myelogenous,
and one chronic lymphocytic). The resi-
dential location of the acute myelogenous
leukemia cases directly bordered the
more concentrated areas of gasoline as
projected by the US Army Corps of Engi-
neer and EPA.
The results of our University of Pittsburgh
study are consistent with what has been
observed in workers who regularly use
benzene but with eight hour exposures,
which are considerably greater. We have
found that chronic low-level benzene ex-
posure is tied with an increased risk for
leukemia among residents living near the
Tranguch spill site. While acute myeloge-
nous leukemia has been definitively linked
to benzene exposure in workers, our study
is one of the first to suggest such an as-
sociation in residents from environmental
exposures in their homes.
Scientists who worked on this study have
met with the community to explain these
results and suggested general precautions
to lower personal environmental exposure
to other sources of benzene, like cigarette
smoke and pumping gasoline as well as
housing cans of paint thinner, gasoline for
lawn mowers and paint in close proxim-
ity to their living areas. Recommendations
were made to public health agencies and
the community based on the study’s find-
ings. They included screening the exposed
community in the future to see whether
they develop other health problems. Pub-
lic health officials will be engaged in sur-
veillance in the spill-affected area in order
to determine the long-term impact of this
low-level exposure to gasoline.
Our research is one of very few studies
to extensively investigate exposures to
gasoline/benzene in a community setting.
Given the high prevalence of leaking un-
derground gasoline tanks in the United
States, this exposure is far from unique.
Therefore, it is important for communities
and public health agencies to cooperate
to assess and address health effects po-
tentially resulting from such leaks.
CEO-UPCI www.environmentaloncology.org
How many light bulbs does it take to change the world?
Continued From Page 8
local Jewish community to engage all of dioxide alone (.001 tons CO2 per kWh in an
us in awareness, advocacy and action to 8,000 hour timeframe) from entering our
conserve energy, reduce greenhouse gas atmosphere. (Source: Oak Ridge National
emissions, and promote energy legislation. Laboratory, The Impact of Environmental
Citations
A feature of this program (easily achievable Externality Requirements on Renewable
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compact_fluorescent_lamp
by each of us) is to change a few of your Energy, Oak Ridge, TN, July 1994). For
2. A 15-watt CFL produces an equivalent amount of light as a
bulbs to CFLs. To date, with just 50,000 more information, visit www.coejl.org/
60-watt incandescent bulb.
bulbs sold nationwide, the campaign climatechange.
3. Based on shipping weights found at Target.com.
has already kept 144,000 tons of carbon
4. Assuming plant is fueled by coal.
A LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT OF INCANDESCENT BULBS 5. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4922496.stm
VERSUS COMPACT FLUORESCENT LAMPS
6. Analysis based on hours of light produced (8,000 hours =
8,000 hour timeframe1 60-watt 15-watt 1 CFL = 6 incandescent bulbs). Therefore, six
Incandescent Compact Fluorescent2 incandescent bulbs must be compared with one CFL.
Purchase and replacement 6*$0.50 = $3.00 $2. 25 7. 0.00006452 lbs/1,000 kWh, varies regionally depending on
costs (Includes energy to coal content.
manufacture the bulbs and
lamps)
Energy required to manu- 1 kWh/bulb 4 kWh/bulb
facture the bulb4,5
Operational costs per 8,000 $48.00 $12.00
hours of light (using a cost
of $.10 per kilowatt hour)
Transportation costs per
6*$0.02/pound*2 ounces3 $0.02/pound*4 ounces3
8,000 hours of light = $0.015 = $0.005
Disposal costs per 8,000 6*$0.02/pound*2 ounces3 $0.02/pound*4 ounces3
hours of light = $0.015 = $0.005
Life Cycle Cost6 $51.03/ 6 bulbs $14.26/ bulb
Mercury emissions result- 0.006 ounces/6,000 bulbs 0.004 ounces/1,000 bulbs
ing from bulb manufac-
ture4,7
Mercury emissions result-
0.5 ounces/ 6,000 bulbs 0.12 ounces/ 1,000 bulbs
ing from generating elec-
tricity to power the bulb4,7
Non-monetized Mer- 0.506 ounces of mercu- 0.124 ounces of mercu-
cury Only Environmental ry/6,000 bulbs ry/1,000 bulbs
Burden6
Winter 2007
Volume 1 • Number 3
Center for Environmental Oncology — University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute 9
 www.environmentaloncology.org
INFORMATION ADAPTED
FROM THE FOLLOWING WEBSITES:
http://www.safe2use.com/nntl/sitemap-n.htm
http://www.getipm.com/notnicetolice/rpn-article.htm
http://www.care2.com/channels/solutions/home/372
http://www.liceout.com/
http://www.headliceinfo.com/faqs.htm
Winter 2007
Volume 1 • Number 3
10
CEO-UPCI
Maternal prenatal exposure to environmental tobacco smoke has the
same harmful effects on the baby as active smoking
Continued From Page 5
whose mothers smoked than in the blood
of those babies whose mothers neither
smoked nor were exposed to second-
ary smoke. To our surprise, the blood of
the babies whose mothers reported only
secondary exposure had just as many mu-
tant cells as those of the smoking moth-
ers, and the mutations were of the same
types, which were known to be caused by
the carcinogens in tobacco smoke. Other
researchers have recently reported that
developing babies are particularly sensi-
tive to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons,
PAHs, the major type of carcinogen found
in tobacco smoke.
To our dismay, our findings showed that
the blood of the children whose moth-
ers quit smoking during pregnancy also
had high numbers of mutant cells. This
raises the possibility that tobacco smoke
damages babies before the mother even
A Head’s Up on Lice
by: Marcia Barr, BSCE, BBEC, Co-Director, Environmental Assessment and Control,
Center for Environmental Oncology of UPCI
Head lice are tiny, wingless bugs about What are the symptoms?
the size of a sesame seed. They have six
legs with tiny claws and live only on hu-
man scalps.
How to tell if your child has lice…
• Lice can be seen with the naked eye
by separating hair strands with a fine
tooth comb.
• Adult lice are brownish tan in color
and their eggs (nits) are yellow or tan.
• Nits may look like dandruff but cannot
be brushed or shaken off.
• Nits are easier to locate than lice.
Center for Environmental Oncology — University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute
knows she is pregnant. Because of this,
we concluded that smoking, and second-
ary exposure to tobacco smoke, should be
avoided by all women who are “likely to
become pregnant.”
It is important to note, however, that all
of the women who quit smoking reported
ongoing exposure to secondary smoke, so
this might be the source of the increased
mutation. What these data indicate is
that it is not enough for a woman to stop
smoking. In order to protect her child
from the effects of secondary exposure,
a woman’s home and her workplace must
be made smoke-free as well. In particu-
lar, the father’s smoking during the baby’s
development may have harmful effects on
the health of the baby, effects that may
undermine the mother’s efforts to protect
the health of her child.
• Itching and scratching often occurs,
which may lead to small red bumps
or sores.
• Continued scratching may result
in bacterial infection, which may
require a topical or oral antibiotic.
How are lice spread?
• Lice are highly contagious, but
cannot fly or jump.
• Spreading occurs from head to
head contact, sharing of clothing,
towels, bed linens (pillows), combs
and brushes, and hats.
Continued on page 11
CEO-UPCI
Leaking underground storage tanks:
an emerging public health risk
by: Evelyn Talbott, DrPH, Professor of Epidemiology, GSPH and Jeanne Zborowski, PhD,
Senior Research Specialist, Department of Epidemiology, GSPH, University of Pittsburgh
After World War II, the automobile became
a fixture in the everyday life of Americans.
The exponential growth of automobile
sales resulted in the construction of thou-
sands of gasoline stations across the coun-
try (2.2 million tanks!) Bare steel tanks,
with an average tank life expectancy of 15
– 30 years, were installed underground to
store gasoline. Since the 1980’s, corrosion
and faulty installation and operation have
resulted in widespread ground water con-
tamination by gasoline (benzene, toluene,
ethylbenzene, xylenes (BTEX compounds)
and methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE).
Because fifty percent of all Americans rely
on groundwater for their drinking water,
these leaking underground storage tanks
pose a significant public health hazard.
Center for Environmental Oncology — University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute
UPCOMING EVENTS
Continued from page 2
Gasoline leaking from these tanks con-
taminates surrounding soil and ground-
water causing both environmental and
human health risks. Benzene, a compo-
nent of gasoline, is categorized by the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
as a proven human carcinogen and has
been linked in occupational studies to in-
creased cancer rates, particularly of the
blood forming organs (leukemia, lympho-
ma, etc). While workers who regularly use
benzene have been consistently found to
have a number of serious health problems
when compared to other workers without
such exposures, few studies have exam-
ined the health effects of a community ex-
posure to low-level benzene via gasoline
or other spills.
Continued on page 4
www.environmentaloncology.org
April 5, 2007
2 – 4 PM
Arlene Blum, renowned biophysical chemist,
environmentalist, mountaineer and author
‘The Dilemma of Flame Retardants: Science,
History, Politics’
UPMC Cancer Pavilion
5150 Centre Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA
Herberman Auditorium, Room 202A
April 6, 2007
5 – 7 PM, Byham Theater
In collaboration with Venture Outdoors Pittsburgh:
Presenting Arlene Blum, biochemist, mountaineer.
Best known for leading the first American—and all
women’s ascent—of Annapurna I, considered one of
the world’s most dangerous mountains. First woman to
attempt Mt. Everest. Author of Breaking Trail: A Climb-
ing Life” And “Annapurna: A Woman’s Place.”
Keynote speaker for the Banff Mountain Film Festival
Please call 412-623-1175 for further information.
April 11, 2007
12 noon – 1 PM
CME-accredited talk
Dr. Joe Suyama, Department of Emergency Medicine,
speaking on ‘Acute Effects of Toxic Exposures’
UPMC Cancer Pavilion
5150 Centre Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA
Herberman Auditorium, Room 202
Please call 412-623-1175 to pre-register
for free healthy lunch.
April 12, 2007
12 noon – 1 PM
CME-accredited talk
Dr. Jonathan Weinkle, Medicine-Pediatrics Resident
and CEO Medical Consultant, speaking on
‘Environmental Health Advocacy’
(Focusing on the American Academy of Pediatrics
Priorities in this area.)
Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh
Room B213-214
Free Healthy Lunch Served.
Please call 412-623-1175 for more details.
Winter 2007
Volume 1 • Number 3
3
 www.environmentaloncology.org CEO-UPCI
About a Hundred Years Ago
Continued From Page 1
For nearly a quarter century, more than
6,000 peer-reviewed studies conducted
in more than thirty different countries
have consistently confirmed that regu-
UPCOMING EVENTS lar exposures to amounts of air pollution
Continued from page 1
that do not immediately kill people in the
February 8, 2007 United States eventually cause between
Pediatric Grand Rounds
40,000 and 100,000 people to die each
Dr. Michael Shannon of Children’s Hospital of Boston
year. In addition, such exposures sicken
Department of Emergency Medicine will give an
millions more with chronic coughs and
update on ‘Mercury’.
Presented by the Departments on Pediatrics and lung diseases, including cancer, and cost
Emergency Medicine of CHP the nation billions of dollars in work days
Shannon will also speak to the residents,
lost and damaged crops and materials.
later at 12 noon about Global Climate Change.
The good news is that air pollution levels,
February 13, 2007
as detected by conventional measures,
4-6 PM
have dropped dramatically—nearly fifty
A Talk by Tyrone Hayes, PhD
Assistant Professor, University of California, Berkeley fold—from the days when most urban
“From Silent Sprint to Silent Night: Hermaphroditic areas could be smelled before they could
Frogs, Breast Cancer and Pesticides.”
be seen. But the full story of what air pol-
Cooper Conference Center, Cooper classroom BC
lution means for our health remains to
Please call 412-623-1175 for further information.
be written.
February 14, 2007
12 -1 PM For instance, asthma rates have dou-
CME-accredited talk on ‘Radon’ by John Mallon,
bled despite the control of convention-
Radon Detection and Control
UPMC Cancer Pavilion ally measured pollutants from cars. And
5150 Centre Avenue, Pittsburgh PA what about unconventional, unmeasured
Herberman Conference Center, Room 201AB pollutants? Nobody is asking whether
Please call 412-623-1175 to pre-register
tiny, growing emissions from degrading
for healthy free lunch.
tires—since some chemicals in synthetic
March 12, 2007
rubber are highly allergenic—could play a
12 noon – 1 PM
Environmental Health at the Movies, role. Nor are questions being raised about
A Healthy Baby Girl whether other toxic pollutants or forms
UPMC Cancer Pavilion of environmental degradation account
5150 Centre Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA
for why young African American chil-
Herberman Auditorium, Room 202
dren have two to four times more asthma
Followed by a Panel Discussion.
Free Healthy Lunch Served. than whites.
Please call 412-623-1175 for more details.
Using American Cancer Society informa-
tion on half a million middle-class people
Continued on page 3
in 154 cities from 1982 to 1998, research-
ers in the Journal of the American Medical
Association in 2003 reported that the risk
of dying from lung cancer from regularly
Winter 2007 breathing air polluted with fine particu-
lates at levels found today in America was
Volume 1 • Number 3
about equal to that of living with a smoker.
2 Center for Environmental Oncology — University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute
In truth, warnings about this problem from
the public health community were provided
nearly 40 years ago. Warren Winkelstein,
working for the New York State Health
Department in 1968, looked at 21 areas in
and around Buffalo, New York, and found
that deaths from lung disease more than
doubled in the dirtiest areas, compared
to the cleanest. In 1955, Peter Stocks and
John Campbell interviewed men dying of
lung cancer in North Wales and Liverpool,
England, and learned that nonsmokers
living in the most polluted zones died at 10
times the rate of those living in the clean-
est areas. In 1958, a study of 187,783 Amer-
ican Army veterans by American Cancer
Society researchers Cuyler Hammond and
Harold Dorn found that the death rate from
lung cancer among those living in cities
was twice that of residents of rural areas.
What if this information had been made
widely available to folks deciding where
to live, and to city officials thinking about
what forms of transport and energy to
permit? What if, at any point in the past 48
years, these reports had been used as the
grounds for making the decisions about
public transport, light, heat and energy?
How many lives might have been saved?1
We cannot erase history or ignore a vast
body of research showing how burning
fossil fuels affects our local and global
health. Because our environment is so
much cleaner today, it’s easy to think of
pollution as something in the past, or af-
flicting some distant land we will never
see. This newsletter makes clear that
decisions we make today about how and
where we live and work affect our health
and that of our children for generations
to come.
CEO-UPCI
A Head’s Up on Lice
Continued From Page 10
How are lice treated?
Lice are difficult to remove because of
their size, life cycle, and their developed
resistance to insecticides. If not treated
correctly, they can be a persistent and
recurring problem. Getting rid of head
lice is a three-step process:
1 Kill all lice and nits. Beware of
medicated shampoos, creams, or
lotions. Familiar over-the-counter
brand names include: Rid, Nix,
Pronto and Clear. However, these
products contain pesticides
(pyrethrin, permethrin, lindane,
malathion and others), also known
as pediculicides, and may not be
advisable for babies, pregnant
women, or people with chronic
disease such as asthma, cancer,
or AIDS. Moreover, pesticides can
enter our soils and waterways and
ultimately end up in our food and
drinking water.
Lice can become resistant to repeated
treatments with pesticides. “Retail Phar-
macy News” offers an extensive list of
alternatives to toxic pesticides including
the following:
• “Not Nice To Lice” contains filtered
and purified water, and natural
enzyme cleaners including Protease,
Lipase, Cellulase and Amylase
• “LiceOut” is a non-toxic
water-based gel
2 Check for and remove all nits by
wet combing and manual nit picking
or by smothering with olive oil.
Wet combing and manual nit picking:
• Wash hair as normal, preferably with
a coconut-oil castile soap. Add a few
drops of tea tree oil and neem oil (the
Center for Environmental Oncology — University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute
soap and oils can be found in health
food stores) to the lathered hair and
apply conditioner liberally
• Rinse and rewash with this
same mixture
• After rewashing, do not rinse, but
wrap a towel around the head and
wait for 30 minutes
• Comb clean hair through with a
normal comb first
• Comb from roots along the complete
length of the hair with a nit-removing
comb, strand by strand, until all
nits are removed (this takes a while).
Dampen hair as needed.
• Work methodically over the whole
head for at least 30 minutes
• Wash and rinse the hair.
Once dry, check thoroughly for
any missed nits.
• Thoroughly clean the comb, hands,
bedding, and clothing. Pillows can
be placed in the freezer overnight.
You can comb a lice-repellant
essential oil through the hair.
The best choices of repellent
essential oils are tea tree, neem,
rosemary, lavender, eucalyptus,
and rose geranium. Add 10 drops
of essential oil to 1 oz. oil. Comb
through the hair. Or make a tea tree
oil shampoo by adding 10 drops of
tea tree oil to 1 oz. of shampoo.
• Repeat the process every few days
for at least two weeks
Smothering head lice with olive oil (after
washing and combing hair) is safe and
effective, but can be complicated.
• Lice breathe through holes in
their sides. When you cover these
Continued on page 12
www.environmentaloncology.org
FLEEING FROM FLEAS
Fleas are reddish brown to black, wingless external
parasites that are generally found on the skin of
cats, dogs and other animals. Although fleas prefer
domesticated animals, when supply is short, fleas
will bite humans or other animals.
What are symptoms of fleas?
• Some cat fleas are suspected of transmitting
murine typhus to humans; however,
primarily the bites are the major nuisance.
• Bites itch and appear as a central
red spot surrounded by a red halo.
• Some may have an allergic reaction to the bite.
How to manage fleas without using pesticides*
• Thoroughly clean pet beds and resting areas
both indoors and outdoors in hot soapy water
• Thoroughly and regularly vacuum floors, rugs,
carpets, upholstered furniture, and crevices
around corners to remove flea eggs and larvae
• Place vacuum bags in a sealed bag and throw
out since flea eggs and larvae can survive
inside the bags
• Use a special comb to remove fleas from your
pet and comb on regular intervals to reduce
occurrence of fleas
• Spray your pet daily with a 50/50 mixture of
white vinegar and water
• Use an enzyme shampoo on your pet
• Mix brewer’s yeast, or vitamin B or garlic
tablets in with pet food.
• Rub animal’s coat with fennel, rue,
and rosemary
• Place eucalyptus seeds and leaves where the
animal sleeps
*As a last resort and after consulting with a
veterinarian, use topical liquid spot treatment
Winter 2007
Volume 1 • Number 3
11
 Printed on chlorine-free 100% PCW Recycled Paper, with Soy-Inks.
Center for Minority Health Addresses Health Disparities with
Programs and Partnerships
Continued from page 7
coordinated prostate cancer education
and screening programs in the barber-
shops. Now, the CMH and CEO plan to
partner with shops and salons to dissemi-
nate information on cancer and the envi-
ronment and on strategies to reduce one’s
individual risk of developing the disease.
Additional Tools to
Address Health Disparities
In 2003, the CMH received the subcontract
to operate the National Cancer Institute’s
(NCI) Atlantic Region Cancer Information
Service (CIS) for Western, Pennsylvania.
The CIS provides the latest and most ac-
curate cancer information for patients and
their families, the public, and health pro-
fessionals. This is accomplished through
its regional CIS Partnership Program pro-
vision of technical assistance as well as
program planning and implementation in
partnership with organizations reaching
underserved populations.
A Head’s Up on Lice
Continued From Page 11
holes with olive oil, the lice will die.
However, it takes awhile for them
to die, because head lice can shut
down their systems for hours.
Knowing how and when to use a
smothering program is essential.
Consult with your physician.
• The least expensive pumice-grade or
restaurant-grade olive oil works best.
• Mineral oil (including baby oil) is
not recommended because it can be
harmful to mucous membranes.
3 Do a reasonable job of cleaning the
infested person’s belongings and
home environment.
Please share this newsletter and be sure it is recycled.
12
This collaboration increases the capacity
of the CMH to fulfill its mission by inte-
grating CIS services and tools into its ex-
isting infrastructure of research, training,
and service. Two program planning tools,
Cancer Control PLANET—a web portal
on comprehensive cancer control plan-
ning and Consumer Health Profiles—a
collection of geographic, demographic,
and health and lifestyle data position the
CMH to help partners identify the cancer
burden in their community. CMH and CEO
will use these tools to further advance en-
vironmental issues.
Through its numerous partnerships and
programs, the Center for Minority Health
is making progress towards its mission
to eliminate racial and ethnic health
disparities.
• Thoroughly clean your child’s towels,
linens, clothes, hats and toys by
adding a few drops of essential oils
that repel or kill lice
• Wash in hot water and dry towels
and linens on very high heat
• Place toys and stuffed animals (that
cannot be cleaned) in plastic bags
and keep sealed for two weeks. This
will kill the lice.
• Replace all combs, brushes and
barrettes, or if possible boil items
in water.
• Vacuum carpets and cars
www.environmentaloncology.org
Center for Environmental Oncology
Winter 2007
Volume 1 • Number 3
ADDITIONAL Winter 2007 • Volume 1 • Number 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTERNET RESOURCES Leaking Underground Storage Tanks:
an emerging public health risk
Beyond Pesticides
PAGE 3
www.beyondpesticides.org
Breast Cancer Fund
Maternal prenatal exposure to environmental
tobacco smoke harms babies during pregnancy
www.breastcancerfund.org
PAGE 5
Children’s Health and Environmental Coalition
Center for Minority Health Addresses Health
www.checnet.org
Disparities with Programs and Partnerships
Department of Environmental Quality PAGE 6
www.deq.state.mi.us/sid-web
How Many Light Bulbs Does it Take to
Environmental Working Group
Change the World?
www.ewg.org PAGE 8
Health Goods
A Heads Up on Lice
www.healthgoods.com PAGE 10
Health Care Without Harm Fleeing From Fleas
www.hcwh.org PAGE 11
OSHA
UPCOMING EVENTS
www.osha.gov
The American Head Lice Information Center ABOUT A HUNDRED YEARS AGO February 8, 2007
www.headliceinfo.com 12 noon – 1 PM
by: Devra L. Davis, PhD, MPH, Director, Center for Environmental Oncology of UPCI and
Environmental Health at the Movies,
The Collaborative on Health and the Environment Professor of Epidemiology, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh and
Blue Vinyl
www.healthandenvironment.org
Ronald B. Herberman, MD, Director, UPCI and UPMC Cancer Centers <The World’s First Toxic Comedy> (Winner Sundance
The CDC Film Festival, Emmy Award Nominee for Best
About a hundred years ago, scientists stud- of these materials, common to cigarette
www.cdc.gov Documentary and Best Research)
ied smoke by comparing the color of any smoke and smoke stacks, such as ben- Open to the Public
The E-House Company
plume they saw to various papers shaded zene, tars, cadmium, and butadiene, are UPMC Cancer Pavilion
www.ehousecompany.com
light gray to dark black. Today, we can rely well-known causes of cancer and other 5150 Centre Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA
The Green Guide Herberman Auditorium, Room 202
www.thegreenguide.com on newly devised electronic eyes to mea- diseases in workers who have been highly
Followed by Panel Discussion.
sure the gases and particles in smoke and exposed. Other emissions include minis-
The National Cancer Institute Free Healthy Lunch served.
www.nci.nih.gov/cancertopics identify things that can be thousands of cule amounts of polonium 210—concen- Call 412-623-1175 for more details
Safe 2 Use
times smaller than a human hair. trated levels of which were recently used Continued on page 2
www.safe2use.com Cigarette smoke remains the best-stud- to kill a former KGB agent in Britain.
Venture Outdoors ied and best-known source of smoke that This newsletter expands on our prior two
www.ventureoutdoors.org Citation
poses a public health threat at this time. issues (which you can access at www.
adapted in part from
But, many of the particles and gases that environmentaloncology.org) and explains
arise from the smoking of tobacco also oc- how important new advances in research 1. Davis, Devra, When Smoke Ran Like Water (New York:
Basic Books, A Member of the Perseus Book Groups, 2002)
cur at lower levels whenever fossil fuels are making it clear that regular exposures
www.whensmokeranlikewater.com
are burned to produce energy and fuel our to small amounts of benzene and other pol-
vehicles, or whenever accidents cause re- lutants can have grave consequences for
Photo on page 5 courtesy of Clean Air for Healthy Children and leases of these materials into the air. Some public health. Funding for this newletter is provided by the
Families (cigarette and smoke were added after photo was taken)
Continued on page 2 Highmark Foundation and the Heinz Endowments.