Impact of arsenic exposure on clinicopathological characteristics of bladder cancer: A comparative study between patients from an arsenic-exposed region and nonexposed reference sites.

Background: Beyond exposure to arsenic in drinking-water, there is few information about demographic and clinicopathological features of patients with bladder cancer living in arsenic-exposed regions. The aim of the study was to assess the impact of arsenic exposure on clinicopathological characteristics in patients with bladder cancer from a contaminated region compared to those of 2 reference areas.

Methods: Data of 285 patients with bladder cancer (83 with arsenic exposure from Antofagasta and 202 controls from 2 different sites in Santiago) were obtained through personal interviews and from review of medical records.

Adaptation to Extreme Environments in an Admixed Human Population from the Atacama Desert.

Inorganic arsenic (As) is a toxic xenobiotic and carcinogen associated with severe health conditions. The urban population from the Atacama Desert in northern Chile was exposed to extremely high As levels (up to 600 µg/l) in drinking water between 1958 and 1971, leading to increased incidence of urinary bladder cancer (BC), skin cancer, kidney cancer, and coronary thrombosis decades later. Besides, the Andean Native-American ancestors of the Atacama population were previously exposed for millennia to elevated As levels in water (∼120 µg/l) for at least 5,000 years, suggesting adaptation to this selective pressure.