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Some people claim that the aluminium in antiperspirants can cause cancer.
For example, Mercola.com:
Putting on antiperspirant is a routine part of most people's day, and you may not think much about it. But here's why you should: if you use one containing aluminum, you could be increasing your risk of breast cancer.
Is there evidence for this?
Researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), a part of the National Institutes of Health, are not aware of any conclusive evidence linking the use of underarm antiperspirants or deodorants and the subsequent development of breast cancer. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which regulates food, cosmetics, medicines, and medical devices, also does not have any evidence or research data that ingredients in underarm antiperspirants or deodorants cause cancer. Source: Antiperspirants/Deodorants and Breast Cancer
Existing evidence is sufficient to conclude that there is no strong link between antiperspirant use and breast cancer and that there is very likely not even a weak link. Given such findings, it is appropriate to move on to other, more promising, avenues of research regarding environmental and lifestyle risk factors for breast cancer. This one’s been investigated and not found to be important. Source: Breast cancer myths: No, antiperspirants do not cause breast cancer
But it isn’t clear that much aluminum is absorbed through the skin. One study that looked at the absorption of aluminum from antiperspirants containing aluminum chlorohydrate applied to the underarms found that only a tiny fraction (0.012%) was absorbed. The actual amount of aluminum absorbed would be much less than what would be expected to be absorbed from the foods a person eats during the same time. It also doesn’t seem that breast cancer tissue contains more aluminum than normal breast tissue. A study that looked at women with breast cancer found no real difference in the concentration of aluminum between the cancer and the surrounding normal tissue. At this point, no clear link has been made between antiperspirants containing aluminum and breast cancer. Source: Should I be concerned about aluminum in antiperspirants?
