# WTC-Related Pollutants in Thyroid Cancer Tissue

> **NIH ALLCDC R21** · ICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUNT SINAI · 2021 · $269,869

## Abstract

Project Summary
There is an increased thyroid cancer incidence reported in the World Trade Center (WTC) first
responder's cohorts and no evidence of surveillance or physician bias as the reason for this
increase was found. Moreover, results from previous studies suggested that inflammation in
distant organs following respiratory WTC dust exposure might be the common pathway driving
this increased cancer risk. However, no research to date has investigated the potential
accumulation of WTC dust components and/or their metabolites in distant organs, including the
thyroid, as a potential (additional) driver of inflammation and carcinogenesis in WTC-exposed
populations.
WTC dust analyses identified a variety of different particles, including metals, with unknown
carcinogenic effect on the thyroid. Using untargeted metabolomics of formalin-fixed paraffin-
embedded (FFPE) thyroid cancer tissue samples, we aim to identify chemical profiles and
potential pathways of interest reflecting a potential mechanistic action comparing 50 WTC-
exposed thyroid cancer samples with 50 non-WTC exposed thyroid cancer samples and 50
benign thyroid cancer tissue (aim 1). We will additionally perform a subgroup analysis using a
novel approach to measure the distribution of metals in thyroid tissue and the spatial association
with markers of local inflammation in fresh frozen tissue comparing 5 WTC-exposed thyroid
cancer samples with 5 non-WTC exposed thyroid cancer samples and 5 benign thyroid cancer
tissue (aim 2).
This study would be the first in-depth study to investigate the presence of WTC dust
components and/or their metabolites in human thyroid cancer tissue and the potential
association with chronic tissue inflammation, which would provide critical information about a
potential pathway driving the increased thyroid cancer occurrence in the WTC-exposed
population. The proposed methods can easily be transposed to other solid cancers with
increased risk in the WTC population, including prostate cancer, as well as to population studies
investigating environmental pollutants as risk factor for the global thyroid cancer increase.
Insight in the presence of environmental pollutants and their metabolites and potentially
associated local inflammation in thyroid cancer tissue as driving factors for carcinogenesis
would shape future epidemiological environmental cancer research.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10315399
- **Project number:** 1R21OH012249-01
- **Recipient organization:** ICAHN SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AT MOUNT SINAI
- **Principal Investigator:** Maaike van Gerwen
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** ALLCDC
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $269,869
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2021-07-01 → 2023-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10315399

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10315399, WTC-Related Pollutants in Thyroid Cancer Tissue (1R21OH012249-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-21 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10315399. Licensed CC0.

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