Exposición a pesticidas (organofosforados, piretroides y glifosato) y su posible relación como agente cancerígeno en seres humanos: una revisión

Abstract

Pesticides are defined as substances or mixtures of substances which are used to kill, repel or control all types of pests (insects, snails, rodents, fungi, bacteria and weeds), therefore this term has a very broad definition and includes agricultural pesticides, plant protection products and non-agricultural pesticides or biocides. (Bolognesi & Merlo, 2019). Since ancient times the use of different substances responsible for controlling various pests has been of great importance in agriculture worldwide, due to the high degree of affectation suffered by crops by various organisms and even by the competitive activity of weeds. The increase in agricultural production has generated an increase in the demand for pesticides worldwide. All pesticides have characteristics related to their toxicity, persistence, bioaccumulation, migration capacity that make them beneficial in aspects such as health programs and in the fight against diseases transmitted by vectors or with intermediate or harmful hosts (Castrejón Godínez et al., 2014). The proper use allows achieving the objective for which they were elaborated and their distribution in the correct dosage towards a defined objective, using the appropriate equipment and protection elements, give acceptable results (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations [FAO], 2002). However, the lack of knowledge of the adverse effects has led to an increase in the inappropriate use of these agrochemicals by the population, which generates implications for biotic systems (animals and plants), abiotic systems (soil, air and water) and risks to public health. (del Puerto Rodríguez et al., 2014). The main effects caused by pesticides to human health are related to their chemical structure and the affinity of their physicochemical properties with biological systems, the doses to which humans are exposed is one of the factors that can lead exposed populations to present various health problems. These problems in human health can occur in the short or long term depending on the type of exposure to which the person is exposed, since the absorption of these can occur through different routes such as respiratory, oral and dermal. Several international entities such as the World Health Organization (WHO/WHO) have classified the different chemical substances, including pesticides, taking into account certain characteristics such as their toxicity, and there are many diseases whose etiology is the use of this class of compounds, diseases such as Parkinson's disease, effects on the fertility of exposed populations and cancer. This last aspect has gained more strength in recent decades as a result of the classification of these substances as possible carcinogens by the WHO, in association with other agencies such as the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) or the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA). The positive association between the use of these substances and their possible carcinogenic effect is based on a significant number of epidemiological studies on affected populations, or experiments carried out in laboratories, which show an increase in the incidence of tumor formations of malignant origin depending on different variables such as the dose or level of exposure. (Bolognesi & Merlo, 2019). In the present work we intend to review different research that has been done during the last ten years (2010-2020) on the relationship between the use of organophosphorus pesticides, pyrethroids and the herbicide glyphosate with the development of cancer at a global and national level.