Researchers Ask US Regulators to Pull Sunscreen After Another Potential Carcinogen Found

Another potential carcinogen has been identified in sunscreen, including popular brands like Banana Boat, Coppertone, and Neutrogena.

Researchers are asking regulators in the United States to pull the potentially harmful sunscreens from shelves over an ingredient called octocrylene. The carcinogen may be found in products that contain benzophenone. 

Benzophenone can affect hormones and reproductive organs. Studies have shown the carcinogen can affect estrogen, according to the World Health Organization. The hormone plays a crucial role in women’s health. Disrupting the hormone can lead to early puberty and can alter the functioning of reproductive organs.  

The WHO’s cancer research arm classifies the chemical as a possible carcinogen based on animal studies. However, no data was available potentially linking it to cancer in humans. 

Researchers have petitioned the Food and Drug Administration to remove all sales of sunscreen containing octocrylene. An estimated 2,400 sun protection products are made with the chemical. 

“The FDA doesn’t know what their safety is, and it’s unconscionable that the FDA would allow something that we don’t know if it’s safe,” Craig Downs, director of nonprofit Haereticus Environmental Laboratory, told Bloomberg.

The FDA asked sunscreen manufacturers for safety data regarding chemical ingredients in 2019. One of the chemicals listed in the request was octocrylene. Then in May, an independent lab found benzene, another potential carcinogen. The discovery led to a recall. 

But two years later, no safety data has been provided, according to David Andrews, a senior scientist at the Environmental Working Group.

The FDA “takes seriously any safety concerns raised about products we regulate, including sunscreen,” a spokeswoman for the FDA told the outlet. 

They “will continue to monitor the sunscreen marketplace to help ensure the availability of safe sunscreens for U.S. consumers,” the statement continued. At the same time, it will continue to evaluate the concerns.