Prostate cancer tumors can contain microplastics

healio.com · Feb 24, 2026 · Collected from GDELT

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February 23, 2026 3 min read Add topic to email alerts Receive an email when new articles are posted on Please provide your email address to receive an email when new articles are posted on . Added to email alerts We were unable to process your request. Please try again later. If you continue to have this issue please contact customerservice@slackinc.com. Key takeaways: Microplastics can be found in prostate cancer tumors. Prostate tumor samples had a higher concentration of microplastics than benign tissue. An evaluation of 10 men with prostate cancer found 90% had microplastics in their tumors, with concentrations more than double that found in surrounding benign prostate tissue. The data, which will be presented at ASCO Genitourinary Cancers Symposium, highlight growing concerns about potential health effects of microplastics. Data derived from Loeb S, et al. Abstract 379. Presented at: ASCO Genitourinary Cancers Symposium; Feb. 26-28, 2026; San Francisco. Stacy Loeb “We all should be worried about the amount of plastics we’re exposed to,” Stacy Loeb, MD, MSc, professor of urology and population health at NYU Grossman School of Medicine, told Healio. Plastic use, waste ‘growing’ Healio previously reported that individuals who had microplastics and nanoplastics in their carotid artery plaques had three to four times greater risk for heart attack, stroke and all-cause death. “That really brought this into focus as a public health issue because plastics are just so ubiquitous,” Loeb said. “Plastic use, plastic waste, it’s only growing over time.” Other studies have shown microplastics can be found in nearly every organ in the human body. These investigations prompted Loeb and colleagues to evaluate if they could be found in prostate cancer tumors, too. “Cancer is something where we see linkages with things like inflammation,” Loeb said. “If these plastic particles are causing inflammation and more cerebrovascular events, if they’re present in carotid plaque, what could they be doing in the prostate?” Loeb and colleagues recruited 10 men with prostate cancer scheduled to get radical prostatectomy to investigate. “It took a year for us to set up the protocols for this study, to try to minimize contamination of the samples between when they’re in the patient's body and the time that they get analyzed,” Loeb said. “We have a lot of substitutions in the operating room, the pathology lab and the chemistry lab, and anything that we couldn’t replace with a non-plastic, we have to run as blanks to subtract out the signature from something that could have touched the prostate.” Quantity of microplastics, particle abundance, morphology and chemical composition served as study endpoints. ‘Very common consumer plastics’ Researchers found microplastics in 90% of patients. They identified microplastics in 90% of tumors and 70% of benign tissue samples. Tumors had a mean microplastic concentration of 39.8 µg/g compared with only 15.5 µg/g in benign tissue. The most common microplastics detected included nylon-6 and polystyrene. Researchers also identified polyethylene and polyethylene copolymers. “It’s scary that we literally find pieces of water bottle in somebody’s prostate tumor,” Loeb said. “These are very common consumer plastics. These could be things like the film that is covering a packaged food.” Researchers acknowledged study limitations, including the small sample size. Loeb and colleagues received a grant to extend their research to 30 patients and aim to have data within the next year. That should just be the start of research, though. “This is something that needs to be studied for every cancer, as well as other conditions that are linked with inflammation,” Loeb said. More data could help shape policy and inform decision-making in the future. “Plastics are used so much in every aspect of life,” Loeb said. “They’re used to store our food. They’re in our clothing. They’re in the air we breathe. It’s going to take a lot more research like this, looking at health impacts, to really prompt a major shift away from plastics because it’s such a staple of life. “In the meantime, it seems prudent for us to do our best to reduce unnecessary exposure. For example, not heating food in a plastic container and using non-plastic containers for food storage. Think through our daily routines. What are some easy swaps?” For more information: Stacy Loeb, MD, MSc, can be reached at stacyloeb@gmail.com. Published by: Sources/Disclosures Source: Loeb S, et al. Abstract 379. Presented at: ASCO Genitourinary Cancers Symposium; Feb. 26-28, 2026; San Francisco. Disclosures: Loeb reports consulting or advisory board roles with Astellas, Blue Earth Diagnostics, Doceree, Endo USA, Movember, Pfizer, Savor Health and Sumitomo Pharma, and research support from Endo USA, unrelated to the current study. Please see the study for all other authors’ relevant financial disclosures. Ask a clinical question and tap into Healio AI's knowledge base. PubMed, enrolling/recruiting trials, guidelines Clinical Guidance, Healio CME, FDA news Healio's exclusive daily news coverage of clinical data Read more about Add topic to email alerts Receive an email when new articles are posted on Please provide your email address to receive an email when new articles are posted on . Added to email alerts We were unable to process your request. Please try again later. If you continue to have this issue please contact customerservice@slackinc.com.