Harmful substances and environmental risks

Many Canadians are worried about harmful environmental substances and cancer. We share your concerns, and we believe that you shouldn’t be exposed to substances that cause cancer at work, at home or in your environment. But we need a lot more research to help us understand how toxic or environmental substances may be linked to cancer. Until we have clear answers on this complex topic, we will do our best to keep you informed about the substances that are being studied.

Our perspective

Substances that cause cancer should be replaced with safer alternatives. If it isn’t possible to get rid of the cancer-causing substance or find a safer option, then exposure to it should be reduced as much as possible.

How we form our policies and recommendations

We constantly monitor new research and scientific evidence so we can tell you more about how to prevent cancer. We take into account the positions of internationally renowned bodies such as the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer, and the National Toxicology Program and Environmental Protection Agency in the United States. Scientific evidence constantly changes – and when it does, we update our information on cancer.ca.

The following pages provide more information about our methodology when evaluating current research and making recommendations to help you protect yourself from cancer risk.

Suggested links for more information

General information about the environment

Environment Canada
This federal government resource provides information about pollution, weather, climate change, and federal activities that protect the environment. The site is a source of information about the National Pollutant Release Registry.

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (US)
The EPA is responsible in the United States for protecting human health and the environment. Its website provides information about pesticides, clean air, clean water, environmental contaminants and many other environmental issues.

National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) (US)
The NIEHS is focused on how the environment influences human disease. Their section on cancer contains an index of research examining various environmental factors that may be linked to cancer.

World Health Organization – Public Health and Environment
This section of the WHO website contains information about the potentially harmful effects of chemicals, radiation, air pollution, occupational health and climate change.

General information about cancer

Public Health Agency of Canada – Cancer
This site provides information about different types of cancer and about the Canadian government’s action plan to fight cancer through prevention, research, screening and other methods.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) – Cancer Prevention and Control (US)
The CDC is responsible for protecting human health and safety. The cancer section of their website contains information about research, statistics, prevention, survivorship and more.

International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC)
IARC is part of the World Health Organization. Its objective is to promote international collaboration in cancer research. Their website provides access to a number of useful (but technical) resources including the IARC Monographs on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans.

Occupational health, safety and exposure

Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety
This website provides information about occupational health and safety, including chemical profiles of over 1,200 substances and chemical hazard information for over 200,000 chemicals.

Health Canada – Healthy Environments and Consumer Safety
This website provides information about environmental contaminants, workplace safety, product safety and substance abuse.

CAREX Canada
This website provides general information about a large number of known or potentially cancer-causing substances. In addition, it provides estimates regarding how many Canadians are exposed to each substance in the workplace and in general.

National Institute for Occupational Health and Safety (NIOSH) – Occupational cancer (US)
NIOSH is focused on preventing work-related disease and injury. The cancer section of their website contains information about cancer clusters, carcinogenic agents found in the workplace, surveillance and health and safety standards in the US.

Information about toxic chemicals

Health Canada – Environmental Contaminants
This website provides information about the environmental impact of toxic substances, including lists of toxic substances and information about human biomonitoring studies being conducted in Canada.

Government of Canada – Chemical Substances
This website provides information about the federal government’s actions around chemical management and current chemical-related issues that affect Canadians.

National Library of Medicine ToxTown (US)
This website provides information about exposure to toxic chemicals at home, at work, at school, and in the community in everyday life. (Note that not all the substances are available in Canada.)

Printed: 12 august 2013

The information that the Canadian Cancer Society provides does not replace your relationship with your doctor. The information is for your general use, so be sure to talk to a qualified healthcare professional before making medical decisions or if you have questions about your health. We do our best to make sure that the information we provide is accurate and reliable but cannot guarantee that it is error-free or complete. The Canadian Cancer Society is not responsible for the quality of the information or services provided by other organizations and mentioned on cancer.ca, nor do we endorse any service, product, treatment or therapy.