Publications : 2024

Bogar L, Burns A, Ierardi M, Yale K. Updated potential airborne asbestos exposure and risk associated with the historical use of cosmetic talcum powder products. Abstract 3607, Society of Toxicology 63rd Annual Meeting, Salt Lake City, UT, March 2024.

Abstract

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Background and Purpose: The use of talc in cosmetic applications has come under scrutiny due to concerns over the potential presence of trace asbestos and subsequent mesothelioma risk. In 1985, the U.S. FDA conducted a risk assessment to evaluate potential consumer exposures and risk associated with the application of talcum powder products. Subsequently, in 2019, a state-ofthe-art exposure and risk assessment was conducted to expand upon the 1985 FDA assessment by evaluating a number of typical consumer usage scenarios including infant powdering during diapering and adult face and body powdering. Since 2019, four additional simulation studies evaluating potential inhalation exposures associated with adult usage of talcum powder products have been published. The purpose of this assessment is (1) to update and expand the 2019 exposure and risk assessment to incorporate the results of the four additional studies which include several new typical usage scenarios in addition to those described above, and (2) to present a hypothetical cumulative exposure estimate for a person that may use a variety of talc-containing products over the course of their life based on typical consumer usage patterns. Methods: Since the underlying exposure data is comprised of a mix of dust and fiber data, a sensitivity analysis was conducted to evaluate the appropriateness of methods used to convert dust data to the standard unit of measure for airborne fiber (f/cc). Exposures were calculated using the upper-bound assumption that some historical talcum power products could have contained as much as 0.1% asbestos, which is the same assumption used by the FDA in 1985. The life-time cumulative exposure estimate is based on the assumption of daily use of multiple talc-containing products over a period of 70 years. The usage assumptions employed for each exposure scenario were selected from published scientific literature and the EPA Exposure Factors Handbook. Results: The results of the sensitivity analysis demonstrate that for each exposure scenario, the converted airborne dust concentrations fall within the range of the measured airborne fiber concentrations and generally lie towards the upper range of measured exposure data. The plausible upper-bound exposure estimated for a hypothetical person using a variety talc-containing products over the course of their life was approximately 0.0027 f/cc-environmental year. This cumulative exposure estimate was well below or within the range of measured and published general population cumulative background or ambient exposures, which have not been associated with increased risk of asbestos-related disease for any fiber type. Conclusions: These results indicate that even considering an upper-bound assumption of 0.1% asbestos content in historical talcum powder products, consumer talc use under a variety of typical usage scenarios and patterns is unlikely to pose an asbestos-related health risk. Further, the results of this exposure and risk assessment support the weight of evidence, including toxicology and epidemiology studies, demonstrating no increased carcinogenic health risk following the inhalation of cosmetic-grade talc.