Abstract: Dr. Deziel will discuss the increasing incidence in thyroid cancer among both adults and children, for which the etiology remains obscure. I will share results from research examining numerous exposures to thyroid hormone disrupting environmental stressors including flame retardants, polychlorinated biphenyls, pesticides, and air pollution in relation to thyroid cancer risk in adults and/or children. I will present on unconventional oil and gas development (UOGD), a complex industrial process that can release a multitude of hazards including air pollution, water contamination, seismic activity, psychosocial stress, and migration of transient workers into the community. I will describe findings from an inter-disciplinary research project evaluating potential exposures and children’s health impacts for communities living near UOGD sites.
Biography: Dr. Deziel obtained a Master’s of Industrial Hygiene and Doctorate in Environmental Health from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Her research is focused on applying statistical models, biomonitoring techniques, and environmental measurements to provide comprehensive and quantitative assessments of exposure to traditional and emerging environmental contaminants in population-based studies. Her research uses a combination of large, administrative datasets and detailed community-focused studies to advance understanding of environmental exposures to chemicals, particularly carcinogens and endocrine disruptors. This research also serves to illuminate exposure mechanisms underlying associations between environmental chemicals and disease, thereby informing more effective policies to reduce exposures and protect public health. Dr. Deziel's contributions have been directed at two main areas: (1) exposure and human health impacts of unconventional oil and gas development (“hydraulic fracturing”) and (2) residential exposure to chemicals in common consumer products (e.g., pesticides, flame retardants) and cancer risk (particularly thyroid cancer). In addition, she consider disproportionate burdens of exposures (“environmental justice”) and the combination of environmental and social stressors in the context of her work.
