Reps Announce Push for Uterine Cancer Study

WASHINGTON — The apparent connection between uterine cancer and the hair straighteners used by many Black women is the focus of a bill introduced in the House by Reps. Shontel Brown, D-Ohio, Yvette Clarke, D-N.Y., and Bonnie Watson Coleman, D-N.J.

The Uterine Cancer Study Act would require the Food and Drug Administration, the National Institutes of Health and the Department of Health and Human Services to coordinate and conduct a study on the relationship between the chemicals used in hair straighteners and the most common type of gynecologic cancer. 

During a Tuesday afternoon press conference, Clark said the legislation would create “a path toward more informed choices and better health outcomes for Black women.”

She then went on to note that “many of our black sisters continue to use hair straighteners to hide their true hair textures in the workplace and from society for acceptance, and they do so without knowing the lasting impact that harmful chemicals contained in these products will have on their health.”

“The study we are requesting would consider the impacts on women at risk of uterine cancer, disaggregate the results according to whether the hair straighteners contain dyes or color or bleach highlights or perms, determine whether the FDA should impose additional testing requirements on manufacturers of hair straightening products, and finally, focus on the increased incidence of such cancer among women of color,” she said.

“This bill could save lives,” Clark said.

“Earlier this year, I introduced legislation that would authorize research, screening and treatment for uterine fibroids,  and the connection between that bill and this one is not that it’s just the same part of the body,” said Rep. Brown. 

“These are very common and very serious conditions impacting women and, disproportionately, Black women. … and here’s what’s really scary,” she said. “As uterine cancer is becoming more prevalent, it’s also one of the very few diseases that is also becoming more deadly.

“Black women are more likely to have this cancer and more likely to die from it,” Brown continued.

She noted that last year, she called on the FDA to conduct research and take whatever steps necessary to get dangerous hair care products off store shelves.

“I’ve been supportive of the FDA’s proposal to ban products that contain formaldehyde. But as of today, the FDA proposal has not gone into effect, and there are a lot more chemicals in these products than just formaldehyde,” Brown said. “That’s why we need this bill to direct HHS, to direct FDA and to direct NIH to study what’s happening, review the existing data, and, importantly, investigate why cancer rates and deaths for black women are going up.”

According to the National Cancer Institute, an estimated 67,880 new cases of uterine cancer will be diagnosed in the United States this year, and about 13,250 women will die from the disease.

Researchers recently reported that while death rates for the most common type of uterine cancer — endometrioid cancer — remained stable, deaths from rare and aggressive types of uterine cancer increased significantly each year from 2010 to 2017.

The study also revealed a disproportionate increase in uterine cancer deaths among the Hispanic, Black and Asian communities.

A separate study by researchers at Boston University of 45,000 Black women who regularly used chemical hair relaxers found a significant increase in uterine cancer diagnoses.

Compared to women who never or rarely used hair relaxers, the researchers said, those who reported using hair relaxers more than twice a year or for more than five years had a greater than 50% increased risk of uterine cancer.

“Our study suggests that moderate and heavy use of chemical hair relaxers may be associated with higher risk of uterine cancer among postmenopausal Black women,” said corresponding author Kimberly Bertrand, ScD, when the results of that study were released.

Bertrand, who is also an associate professor of medicine at Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine, said their findings confirmed there are major racial disparities in uterine cancer. 

“Compared to non-Hispanic White women, Black women have higher rates of aggressive subtypes of uterine cancer and are nearly twice as likely to die from their disease,” she said.

According to the researchers, the findings highlighted the importance of continued research regarding the potential adverse health effects of exposure to chemical hair relaxers and their constituents. 

“Black women are often underrepresented in health research and may have unique exposures that contribute to disparities in disease,” Bertrand said.

If it passes and is signed into law, the Uterine Cancer Study Act would require the three agencies to review other studies on the topic and report their findings within two years of the bill becoming law.

Dan can be reached at [email protected] and @DanMcCue