Do Antiperspirants / Deodorants Cause Breast Cancer?
Published in 1999 (important updates below) One of the more persistent medical misconceptions still striking fear into the hearts of Internet gossipers is the claim that the use of underarm antiperspirants or deodorants is “the leading cause of breast cancer” (see full text of email rumor). The scare story has been thoroughly trounced by reliable sources, including the American Cancer Society. According to researchers, antiperspirants have no known (or even suspected) connection with breast cancer. It goes without saying they are not its “leading cause.” In a May 1999 article by Dawn MacKeen on Salon.com, Dr. Mervyn Elgart of the department of dermatology at George Washington University eloquently dismissed the rumor as, and I quote