Hair straightening chemicals put some women at higher risk for uterine cancer, study finds
RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- A new study has found women who used hair straightening chemicals were at higher risk for uterine cancer.
Researchers with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) compared women who did and did not use the products.
They studied the women's habits over 11 years and looked at more than 33,000 women over the span of the study.
In the end, 378 were diagnosed with uterine cancer.
According to the study researchers found no connections with uterine cancer for other hair products that the women reported using, including hair dyes, bleach, highlights, or perms.
Uterine cancer accounts for about 3% of all new cancer cases but is the most common cancer of the female reproductive system, with 65,950 estimated new cases in 2022. Studies show that incidence rates of uterine cancer have been rising in the United States, particularly among Black women, NIH researchers said.
