Easy PFAS Testing Could Discover Harmful Amounts Earlier

According to a new Michigan State University study, allowing persons at high risk of PFAS exposure to readily self-test could enhance access to testing for these “forever chemicals” and lead to the early discovery of harmful health concerns. The study investigated a new method allowing consumers to collect their own blood samples to test for PFAS without being a part of a scientific study.

PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are a family of over 9,000 compounds that are widely employed in the production of industrial and consumer goods. They are widely referred to as “forever chemicals” because of their extraordinary persistence in the environment as well as in the human body, where they can stay for many years.

Early detection of elevated PFAS blood levels in individuals with elevated exposure, whether through drinking water or occupational hazard, can inform exposure reduction and medical screening to protect against associated harm to the liver, kidneys, and thyroid; immune system; reproduction and development; and the risk of several cancers.

Interventions are particularly critical for protecting babies, children, and pregnant women because PFAS build in the body over time, cross the placenta and accumulate in the fetus, and pass into breast milk. They’ve been connected to a variety of health problems, including high cholesterol, cancer, infertility, and low birth weight.

Furthermore, PFAS have contaminated millions of Americans’ drinking water, and the US Environmental Protection Agency recently recommended enforceable drinking water regulations for six forms of PFAS.

“People with drinking water contamination often want to know their PFAS blood levels but have trouble gaining access to a blood draw and testing,” said Courtney Carignan, assistant professor in MSU’s colleges of Agriculture and Natural Resources and Veterinary Medicine and lead author of the study. “Blood test results can be used to document exposure, compare with levels in the general populations, inform exposure reduction and take health protective action.”

The authors of a study published in Environmental Science & Technology looked at PFAS exposure determined by self-collection of blood using both the new finger prick and traditional blood draw procedures in 53 adults who had a history of PFAS drinking water contamination.

Participants initially submitted a blood sample obtained through a blood draw, after which they stabbed their finger using a lancet—a tool often used for diabetic blood testing—to collect a specific amount of blood onto a new sampler. Eurofins laboratory tested the blood samples for 45 distinct PFAS types, five of which were discovered frequently enough in the samples to be compared.

The scientists found similar detection frequencies and significant correlations between the two techniques in their investigations.

“Results indicate that the new approach can work as well as the traditional approach among our highly exposed population,” Carignan said. “Since the traditional approach uses the serum component of blood and our new approach relies on whole blood, we also confirmed an approximate 2:1 ratio of PFASs in serum compared to whole blood.”

“In addition, we found that the whole-blood approach may offer a more comprehensive picture of the PFAS in our blood, including compounds such as FOSA,” said Christopher Higgins of the Colorado School of Mines and a co-author of the study. FOSA, also known as perfluorooctane sulfonamide, is a PFAS found in almost half of the whole-blood samples but not in any of the serum samples.

While the scientists concluded that the new methodology is promising, they cautioned users to apply proper self-collection and sensitive analytical approaches. Also, when comparing levels in serum, the appropriate conversion must be used, which some labs, such as Eurofins, will do but others may not. According to the authors, simply multiplying the whole-blood concentration by two yields a decent estimate of the serum equivalent. Carignan further stated that future studies should be conducted in the general population to test the novel approach before it is widely used in PFAS exposure and health research.

“The ability to use a finger-prick device to measure PFAS exposure opens up new research opportunities, and importantly, allows people in the general public to test their own blood without having to be part of an academic research study,” said co-author and environmental chemist, Heather Stapleton, Duke University.

Source Link