Prolonged exposure to poor air quality appears to increase the risk of cancer, particularly breast and prostate cancers, a study in the US has suggested, bolstering evidence for environmental links to cancer. The study led by Jyotsna Jagai, an environmental health researcher at the University of Illinois, Chicago, has found that counties across the US with poor environmental quality had on average 39 more cases of cancer per 100,000 people than counties with high environmental quality. Counties with the poorest environmental quality - measured through air, water and land - had on average the highest numbers of new cancers per year, according to the study published today in the research journal Cancer. "Our study is the first we are aware of to address the impact of cumulative environmental exposures on cancer incidence," Jagai, a research assistant professor at the university, said in a release.

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