Aristolochic acid-associated cancers: a public health risk in need of global action

In a new article published in the journal Nature Reviews Cancer, scientists from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and partner institutions review the latest evidence for the mutagenicity and carcinogenicity of aristolochic acids. They also discuss the persisting challenges of assessing the scale of aristolochic acid-related carcinogenicity, and propose that further inaction on curtailing exposure to aristolochic acids will have far-reaching negative effects on the incidence trends of the associated cancers.

Aristolochic acids are a group of naturally occurring compounds that are present in many plant species of the family Aristolochiaceae. Exposure to aristolochic acids is a significant risk factor for severe nephropathy and urologic, hepatobiliary, and potentially other cancers. Despite this, herbal medicinal products containing aristolochic acids continue to be manufactured and marketed orldwide with inadequate regulation, and possible environmental exposure routes receive little attention.

The authors estimate the impact of removing sources of exposure to aristolochic acids on cancer incidence trends. They also discuss the obstacles that must be overcome to curb exposure to aristolochic acids and prevent the associated cancers. This comprehensive study aims to strengthen the case for the implementation of prevention measures against the multifaceted, detrimental, and potentially fully preventable effects of aristolochic acids on the development of cancer in humans.

Das S, Thakur S, Korenjak M, Sidorenko VS, Chung FLF, Zavadil J.
Aristolochic acid-associated cancers: a public health risk in need of global action
Nat Rev Cancer, Published online 19 July 2022;
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41568-022-00494-x

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