Permanent Home Hair Dye Products Found To Have No Link To Most Cancers, Says Study

The lockdowns and quarantines have caused people to miss their trips to the hair salon. Due to this, many have turned to coloring their hair at home. Those who fear the practice can increase their risk of cancer may find solace in a new study, which revealed women who use permanent hair dye products at home would not face an increased risk of cancer or cancer-related mortality.

The study, published Wednesday in the BMJ, analyzed data of 117,200 women who were enrolled in the Nurses' Health Study based at the Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston. The researchers assessed these women's hair dye exposure and noted, at the start of the study, they had no cancer. These women were closely monitored for 36 years.

The results of the study revealed women who used permanent hair dyes at home showed no increased risk of most cancers or cancer deaths when compared to those who have never used hair dyes. The researchers noted the use of hair dyes did not elevate risk of cancers of colon, kidney, bladder, brain, blood, and immune system.

Most skin cancers, which include melanoma and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, along with certain types of breast cancer -- specifically the hormone receptor positive, progesterone receptor positive and estrogen receptor positive -- did not pose any threat.

However, there are three types of breast cancer, which researchers found to show an increased risk. These types include the hormone receptor negative, estrogen receptor negative and progesterone receptor negative. They also noted there was an increase in ovarian cancer, the risk of which was dependent on the cumulative amount of exposure of women to the dye.

Naturally dark-haired women may have to be more careful since researchers noted they showed an increased risk to Hodgkin lymphoma, a cancer of the lymphatic system. The authors said a possible explanation for this is that hair dyes with darker colors also have higher concentrations of ingredients.

Paul Pharaoh, a University of Cambridge professor of cancer epidemiology in the United Kingdom, who was not involved in the research, stated in a CNN report that, overall, there really is no difference in cancer rate in general in women who use dyes at home and those who do not.

The researchers did not touch on other cancers like pancreatic and lung cancer. They noted the study was merely observational and was not meant to establish a cause and effect relationship. They also cited limitations such as the lack of racial diversity as well as the use of varied products.