Handling chemo raises risk of miscarriage
27th January 2012
Women exposed to chemotherapy drugs or sterilising agents at work are twice as likely to miscarry as their colleagues who do not handle these chemicals, research suggests.
In a study of almost 7500 US nurses who were pregnant between 1993 and 2002, one in 10 had a spontaneous abortion at 20 weeks’ gestation or earlier.
However, this rate doubled among nurses who were regularly exposed to chemotherapy drugs or sterilising agents for more than one hour a day.