There is a drug that can significantly lower the levels of PFAS in our blood, but it also has side effects that prevent widespread use. — AFP
A medication for high cholesterol can drastically cut “forever chemicals” (known formally by their acronym PFAS) in the blood, researchers said on Feb 29 (2024).
But the drug was not suitable for widespread and prolonged use because of its side effects, and more research is needed to explore its possible impact on certain chronic health conditions.
A clinical trial with the drug cholestyramine led to a reduction 20 times greater than the normal result without intervention, said the study’s corresponding author Dr Morten Lindhardt.
“The effect of treatment was actually a decrease in the plasma of 63%,” said the doctor based in Denmark’s Holbaek Hospital.
The researchers say the results are promising for treating people who have been exposed to high doses of the “forever chemicals”, so called because they tend to accumulate and stay in the body.
PFAS, which stands for “per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances”, is associated with an increased risk of cancer and is banned in Europe.
It refers to a family of some 4,000 chemical compounds.
But Dr Lindhart added of the new treatment: “I don’t think you should take this medication permanently because there are side effects.”
It could nevertheless alleviate the “feeling of being poisoned” that people with high levels of pollutants could feel, he added.
PFAS can reduce the immune response from vaccination, hit cholesterol levels, and have been linked to cancers and obesity.
Some residents of the town of Korsor in central Denmark, were exposed to high levels of one of them – a chemical called perfluoroctane sulphonic acid (PFOS).
It was present in a foam used to extinguish fires at a local firefighting training facility.
This community, where the measured PFOS levels are well above normal levels, was chosen for the clinical trial on 45 residents.
Despite the small sample size, Dr Lindhardt argued that the effect of the treatment was beyond dispute.
Nevertheless, widespread treatment for everyone with elevated PFAS levels was out of the question, he added.
“The risk of side effects is way too big,” he explained.
“If you went on to treat everybody, it will be a disaster.”
But one potential use could be for women of childbearing age, to limit the transmission of the chemicals to their children.
“It could break the chain of delivering these chemicals to the next generation,” Dr Lindhart said.
He still argued for caution though as the impact on the kidney or on immune deficiencies has not yet been studied. – AFP Relaxnews
