cancer
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Rising temperatures linked to growing cancer death rates among women in Middle East and North Africa
As extreme heat intensified across the Middle East and North Africa between 1998 and 2019, cancer mortality among women steadily climbed, according to new research.
In short:
- A study in Frontiers in Public Health analyzed cancer data in 17 Middle Eastern and North African countries and found higher temperatures were linked to increased cases and deaths from breast, ovarian, uterine, and cervical cancers.
- For each 1°C temperature rise, cancer cases increased from 173 to 280 per 100,000 women and deaths rose from 171 to 332 per 100,000, with ovarian cancer showing the steepest rise.
- Researchers attribute the trend to increased exposure to ultraviolet radiation, worsening air pollution during heatwaves, and barriers women face in accessing cancer screening and treatment in the region.
Key quote:
“Women in this region face cultural, legal, and economic barriers to screening and treatment while also being disproportionately exposed to environmental carcinogens.”
— Wafa Abuelkheir Mataria, senior research fellow at the American University in Cairo
Why this matters:
In regions where heat is escalating, so are exposures to pollutants and UV radiation that can trigger or worsen cancer. For women in the Middle East and North Africa, who often lack access to regular screening or cancer treatment, the burden becomes heavier. Heat worsens air quality by spurring chemical reactions that boost pollutants like ozone and fine particulate matter, both known carcinogens. It also stresses healthcare systems already strained by conflict, poverty, or underfunding. When higher temperatures correlate with higher cancer mortality, it forces a deeper look into how rising global temperatures intersect with inequality — particularly in how climate risks affect women’s bodies differently. This trend may signal similar risks for other regions experiencing rapid warming, raising questions about preparedness and equity in public health systems under pressure from climate change.
Learn more: New research finds humans may overheat faster than we thought as the planet warms
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New EPA reorganization may quietly dismantle chemical health watchdog
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is moving to gut its independent chemical risk program, potentially stalling regulation of dangerous substances and handing a long-sought victory to the chemical industry.
In short:
- The EPA’s Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS), which offers independent health assessments of toxic chemicals, is being splintered as part of a wider agency restructuring.
- IRIS has long been targeted by the chemical industry and was recently attacked in legislation and lobbying efforts supported by the American Chemistry Council.
- Experts warn that without a centralized, science-first hub like IRIS, chemical risk research will become fragmented, slowing down protections and enabling regulatory loopholes.
Key quote:
“Nothing is getting regulated right now."
— Jennifer Orme-Zavaleta, former principal deputy assistant administrator of the EPA Office of Research and Development and a former EPA science adviser
Why this matters:
The timing couldn’t be more convenient — for the chemical lobby. Gutting IRIS could mean years-long delays in protecting people from the very real dangers of daily chemical exposure. With over 80,000 chemicals registered for use in the U.S. — and more added each year — slowing regulation means longer exposure to toxic substances linked to cancer, reproductive harm, and chronic illness. This is part of a larger rollback strategy with major impacts for environmental health, just as new threats like PFAS demand urgent, science-based action.
Read more: The silent threat beneath our feet: How deregulation fuels the spread of forever chemicals
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Chemical plant in Louisiana’s Cancer Alley halts operations amid financial losses and regulatory pressure
A chemical plant in Louisiana long criticized for endangering nearby residents with toxic air pollution has suspended production indefinitely following major financial setbacks and regulatory challenges.
In short:
- Denka Performance Elastomer has paused all operations at its neoprene-producing facility in St. John Parish, citing $109 million in losses, dwindling demand, and stricter environmental regulations under former President Biden.
- The Biden administration introduced rules targeting chloroprene emissions and sued Denka to cut pollution, but President Trump’s Justice Department dropped the case in March, calling it ideological overreach.
- Local residents, many of whom have lost loved ones to cancer, expressed cautious hope at the closure of the plant but remained concerned the site could be sold to another polluter with little change in emissions.
Key quote:
“They don’t care about us. What I see now is that they never intended to get emissions down.”
— Mary Hampton, Boundless Community Action
Why this matters:
Cancer Alley — a stretch of the Mississippi River in Louisiana dotted with petrochemical plants — has become a national symbol of environmental injustice. Residents, predominantly Black and low-income, have long reported elevated cancer rates and respiratory illnesses. Chloroprene, the chemical produced by the Denka plant, is classified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as “likely to be carcinogenic to humans.” Though Denka claims an 80% reduction in emissions, federal air monitors consistently report chloroprene levels far exceeding safety guidelines. The plant’s suspension may offer temporary relief, but it does not erase decades of toxic exposure or guarantee that future owners won’t resume harmful operations.
Related EHN coverage: Plastic's toxic reach in Louisiana
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Top Story
Multiple Houston-area oil and gas facilities that have violated pollution laws are seeking permit renewals
One facility has emitted cancer-causing chemicals into waterways at levels up to 520% higher than legal limits.
HOUSTON — Multiple Houston-area oil and gas facilities that have previously violated the pollution limits in their permits have recently applied for new federal operating permits or renewals.
These facilities include the Chevron Pasadena Refining facility, the LyondellBasell Houston refinery, and the Chevron Phillips Chemical Sweeny Complex in Brazoria County, all of which are seeking renewed Title V permits.
Title V air permits are required for facilities that are considered major sources of air pollution by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In general, a facility is considered a major source when it emits more than 100 tons of most pollutants or more than 10 tons of hazardous air pollutants, which are known to cause cancer or serious health effects, each year.
There are 1,455 Title V facilities in Texas, according to Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) spokesperson Victoria Cann. This represents more than 10% of all Title V facilities in the U.S., according to data from 2020, which puts the national total of Title V facilities at 12,726. There are currently 88 facilities seeking new or renewed Title V permits in Texas, according to TCEQ.
Chevron’s Pasadena refining facility
Chevron is seeking a renewal of their Title V operating permit for the company’s Pasadena refining facility.
The facility violated the Clean Air Act in eight of the past 12 quarters and violated the Clean Water Act in seven of the past 12 quarters, including elevated effluent water discharges of benzene, ethylbenzene, toluene, and xylenes at levels up to 520% as high as the legal limit, according to the EPA’s compliance database. Benzene has been linked to a number of health problems, including an increased cancer risk and cell disruption. Ethylbenzene, toluene, and xylenes have been linked to short-term impacts like headaches, dizziness, and fatigue, and long-term problems like memory, vision, and hearing loss.
Houston area residents recently gathered to attend a hearing on Chevron’s Pasadena Title V permit renewal. Some attendees shared support for renewing the permit, citing economic and community donations, while others shared concerns about health impacts from the refinery’s operations.
Inyang Uwak, an environmental epidemiologist and research and policy director at the environmental group Air Alliance Houston, said the refinery’s benzene fenceline monitoring levels have been above the EPA action level since April of last year.
While exceeding the action level is not a violation in itself, it does require the refinery to determine a “root cause analysis and take corrective action.” In the past two years, Chevron Pasadena Refinery has exceeded the EPA action level for benzene 18 times.
“I know benzene can be very scary,” Chevron Pasadena Refinery’s environmental manager Steph Seewald said at the hearing, stating that the new data for the first quarter of 2025 should be available soon, and is “trending downward.” Federal data to confirm this is not yet available at the time of publication.
Pasadena Refining’s general manager Tifanie Steele said that since Chevron purchased the refinery six years ago from Petrobras, the facility has made “several improvements” and cited decreases in overall emissions by “investing time and money into improving compliance.”
LyondellBasell’s Houston refinery
LyondellBasell's Title V permit hearing for its Houston-area refinery is scheduled for May 6, 2025, despite an announcement that this facility will soon close.
Violations in the last three years at this facility, according to EPA data, include one quarter violating the Clean Air Act, four quarters violating the Clean Water Act and three quarters violating the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, which governs the disposal of solid, hazardous waste.
The future of the facility remains unclear, but the company stated it plans to start operations of “circular projects” in 2025. Residents and environmental groups like Air Alliance Houston say they hope this hearing will provide clarity about the company’s future in Houston.
Chevron Phillips Chemical’s manufacturing facilities in Brazoria County
Chevron Phillips Chemical’s second largest manufacturing facility in Brazoria County, which spans across three sites, is also seeking a renewal of their federal operating permit.
According the the EPA, the Chevron Phillips Chemical Sweeny Complex has violated its permits numerous times during the past three years: for one quarter it violated the Clean Air Act, for seven quarters it violated the Clean Water Act, for six quarters it violated the Safe Drinking Water Act, and for five quarters it violated the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.
The Houston-Galveston-Brazoria area is home to one of the nation’s largest concentrations of petrochemical facilities, accounting for nearly 42% of the nation’s supply. The dense population of petrochemical facilities creates concern about cumulative impacts for communities that live in these regions, which recent studies suggest are often underestimated.
In order to keep community members in the Greater Houston area informed, Air Alliance Houston told Environmental Health News that they maintain a database called AirMail to alert residents of upcoming public meetings regarding permits. The TCEQ has made attempts in the past five years to increase public participation in meetings through avenues like increasing language accessibility, but participation is still lacking.
“Similar to voting, [attending public meetings] is your opportunity to have a voice,” Air Alliance representative Cassandra Cassados Klein told EHN. “We know that civic engagement is a great tool in protecting our air quality.”
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US Senate votes to ease regulations on toxic air pollution from industry
In a historic rollback of Clean Air Act protections, the U.S. Senate voted to let polluters off the hook for controlling the most dangerous air pollutants, with the House of Representatives and President Trump expected to follow suit.
In short:
- The Senate voted 52-46 to overturn a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rule that required constant pollution controls for seven of the most dangerous airborne toxins, including mercury and dioxins.
- The rule, which President Biden finalized last year, had forced over 1,800 industrial sites to clean up emissions that cause cancer, brain damage, and other serious illnesses.
- If the House votes to overturn the rule and Trump signs it, this will mark the first time in the Clean Air Act’s 55-year history that Congress has rolled back protections under the law.
Key quote:
“Repealing this rule would be such a giveaway to corporate polluters. These facilities could increase their toxic pollution without any accountability or oversight.”
— Nathan Park, an associate legislative representative at Earthjustice
Why this matters:
Proponents of overturning the rule say it is burdensome to business. But the action would weaken protections for low-income communities and communities of color living near industrial plants — places that are often already burdened by high cancer rates and toxic exposure. Taking action to scale back Clean Air Act protections is a first for Congress, and a victory for the fossil fuel and petrochemical industries that had lobbied to overturn the regulation.
Read more from EHN:
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Credit: U.S. National Archives/research.archives.gov/description/545246/Flickr
Opinion: Trump-era science cuts opens the door wide to industry-fueled pollution
The Trump administration’s move to gut EPA science programs could let polluting industries rewrite the rules on cancer-causing chemicals, writes Jennifer Sass for Scientific American.
In short:
- The Trump administration plans to eliminate the EPA’s independent research office, removing over 1,000 scientists whose work underpins clean air, water, and chemical safety laws.
- With industry lobbyists rewriting the rules and public science on the chopping block, environmental protections will increasingly rely on biased, polluter-funded research.
- Texas provides a cautionary tale: After EPA scientists found a strong link between ethylene oxide and breast cancer, Texas regulators pushed a weaker, industry-sponsored report that would allow thousands of times more pollution.
Key quote:
“Eliminating scientists from the EPA is kneecapping environmental safeguards. Every major environmental statute — the Clean Air Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act and the Superfund law governing cleanup requirements — relies on EPA scientists to calculate how hazardous chemicals are, how people and wildlife may be exposed and what health and ecological harms may occur.”
— Jennifer Sass, senior scientist, Natural Resources Defense Council
Why this matters:
If successful, this move would give polluting industries a bigger voice in writing the rules, while pushing the people who actually study cancer risk and chemical safety out of the room. When science is sidelined, health risks skyrocket. If polluters get to define what’s “safe,” communities face higher chances of cancer, asthma, and long-term illness. Without that science, the system tilts even further in favor of corporations, while people are left breathing the consequences.
Read more:
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Credit: Kristina Blokhin/BigStock Photo ID: 196171783
EPA opens quiet backdoor for polluters to bypass clean air rules
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has rolled out a process allowing companies to sidestep limits on mercury and cancer-causing emissions — with nothing more than an email request.
In short:
- New EPA guidance invites companies to email requests for exemptions from Clean Air Act rules, including protections against mercury and ethylene oxide, both known health hazards.
- The guidance claims the Clean Air Act allows the president to “exempt stationary sources of air pollution from compliance with any standard or limitation under section 112 for up to two years if the technology to implement the standard is not available and it is in the national security interests of the United States to do so.”
- The exemption pathway, based on a rarely used legal provision, could delay pollution controls for years, with little transparency or clear criteria for approval.
- Experts warn the move could lead to increased cancer risk, especially for communities already breathing some of the country’s most toxic air.
Key quote:
“The new Trump EPA website invites hundreds of industrial sources of cancer-causing pollution and other toxics to evade science-based clean air standards that are designed to keep our families safe — all with a single email.”
— Vickie Patton, general counsel of the Environmental Defense Fund
Why this matters:
Toxic air pollution, especially from industrial sources, has been directly linked to cancer, neurological damage in children, and chronic disease. Letting companies skip pollution controls — potentially for years — could mean disaster for frontline neighborhoods already living with the country's dirtiest air. Critics charge that the process lacks transparency, clear criteria, or even a public record of who's applying. It feels less like regulation and more like a quiet invitation to pollute — sent straight to your inbox.
Read more:
- EPA rollbacks could endanger public health, experts warn
- Levels of cancer-causing benzene reached new heights in beleaguered Channelview, Texas. Regulators never told residents
- Trump administration plans to drop lawsuit over Louisiana petrochemical plant
- Lawsuits challenge EPA's new ethylene oxide regulations
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