A government study finds bladder cancer risk was associated with groundwater intake among participants with a history of private domestic well use. The trend was significant for participants who used shallow dug wells exclusively, a well type that typically has low arsenic concentrations but may have had higher concentrations historically. Bladder cancer rates have been elevated in northern New England (Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont) for at least 5 decades compared to the rest of the U.S. This excess is seen in both males and females, which suggests environmental causal factors. The high proportion of private domestic water wells in this region with arsenic led to the hypothesis that drinking water from these water wells may play a role in bladder cancer occurrence.
In this collaborative study, scientists from the National Cancer Institute, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, the Departments of Health for Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont, and the USGS examined the role of private well water consumption and arsenic concentrations on bladder cancer risk. The study used approximately 2,300 participants (cancer patients and control subjects) and collected risk factor information consisting of lifetime water consumption (including groundwater used in food preparation) to calculate total water intake. Lifetime arsenic exposure was calculated as the average annual arsenic concentration; arsenic daily intake was calculated as the average concentration times the number of liters per day of consumption.
Cumulative arsenic intake and number of years with arsenic greater than 10 ug per liter were also evaluated. Ancestry, smoking, occupation, and use of wood-burning stoves, as well as shellfish and bracken fern consumption, were examined. The assignment of arsenic level was done by direct measurement of concentrations in current (2001-04) and past wells. The inability to sample many past wells required estimation of arsenic levels from models.
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