Features

Misleading headlines on breast cancer risk and air pollution


News reports covering a new study looking at a link between breast density from mammograms and air pollution claimed that women who live in more polluted areas are at a higher risk of breast cancer. The Sun said: “Big C Traffic Shock – Living near busy roads changes a woman’s boobs, ‘increasing the risk of breast cancer’,” while the Daily Mail headline was: “Women who live in cities with high air pollution may be at higher risk of breast cancer, major study suggests”. The Evening Standard headline ran: “Women who live in more polluted areas ‘at higher risk of breast cancer’”.