A systematic review of association between organic environmental pollutants and testicular cancer

Abstract

<p><i>Objective</i> There is an increasing incidence of testicular cancer in the world, which cannot be explained by factors as increasing life expectancy as this type of cancer typically affects young men. Particularly in certain countries that also score high on the Human Development Index (HDI) the incidence of testicular cancer is high, and as countries increase the HDI so does the incidence of testicular cancer. It is hypothesized that something introduced in the environment may induce with testicular cancer, like organic environmental pollutants. The research question for this review was articulated as: “A systematic review of association between organic environmental pollutants and testicular cancer” <p><i>Methods</i> A systematic literature in PubMed search was conducted on the 23rd of October 2019. The search involved articles published the last ten years. Inclusion criteria were articles reviewing the effects organic environmental pollutants have on cell mechanisms that could be linked to the development of testicular cancer, or incidents that could be linked to exposure. Articles involving cancer treatment, or other effects organic environmental pollutants have on human health were excluded. After sorting out the relevant articles there were a total of 28 articles to be used in this systematic review. <p><i>Results</i> After a selection process the literature search yielded 20 articles that were included in this research, most of which were reviews. The articles presented conflicting conclusions, while some supported the hypothesis of an association between organic environmental pollutants and testicular cancer, others did not imply association. <p><i>Conclusion</i> There has been done too little research on this field to conclude whether organic environmental pollutants have a causal effect on the development of testicular cancer. However, some articles suggested that there could be an association. Especially cell studies demonstrated an effect of organic environmental pollutants on cell components. Further research on the field of environmental pollutants and the development of testicular cancer is therefore needed.