Fact check: Face masks don’t lead to lung cancer
Agencies say chemicals used do not make coverings unsafe
But some do contain chemicals. We break it down and explain what’s true or false in recent Facebook posts.
As health officials around the country encourage mask-wearing to slow the spread of COVID-19, a Facebook post is claiming masks can give wearers cancer.
“THAT MASK IS GIVING YOU LUNG CANCER,” reads the Oct. 15 Facebook post, written by Guy Crittenden. As a source, Crittenden cites his time as former editor of the Canadian trade publication HazMat Management, which in part focuses on issues related to occupational safety and waste management.
He also asserted his claims are backed up by “OSHA mask experts” Tammy Clark and Kristen Meghan, two women with backgrounds in environmental health and safety who appeared on anti-vaccine personality Del Bigtree’s webcast “The HighWire.” The two women spoke out against face masks, though notably did not address the supposed cancer-causing chemicals Crittenden’s post mentions. Bigtree has used his program to push various COVID-19-related conspiracy theories.
Crittenden’s post has been shared across a number of platforms, with Pennsylvania state Rep. Russ Diamond sharing a link to it via The Human News Network, a website that claims to “carry the load vacated by the Fake Media.”
Crittenden claims wearing masks causes oxygen deprivation (experts say it doesn’t), that they don’t offer protection against the coronavirus and that chemicals used on masks will give wearers cancer.
Masks won’t lead to lung cancer. And they do protect against the coronavirus. Claims to the contrary are false. USA TODAY found that Crittenden’s statements about chemicals and face masks require more context.
Ethylene oxide used to sterilize masks?
One of the chemicals Crittenden mentions is ethylene oxide, a “known carcinogen” he claims is used to sterilize surgical masks.
According to the World Health Organization, ethylene oxide is a “potent neurotoxin, a known human carcinogen, a potential reproductive hazard, and an allergic sensitizer” that can cause health problems with acute overexposure and chronic exposure. Lymphoma and leukemia are the cancers most commonly linked to occupational exposure to ethylene oxide, although stomach and breast cancers may also be associated, according to the National Cancer Institute.
At the same time, “ethylene oxide sterilization is an important sterilization method manufacturers widely use to keep medical devices safe,” according to the U.S.
Food and Drug Administration. Ethylene oxide may sometimes be the only method of effectively sterilizing equipment that would otherwise be damaged in other sterilization processes, the FDA notes.
About 50% of all sterile medical devices in the U.S. are sterilized with ethylene oxide, according to the FDA. The FDA encourages medical device makers to follow consensus standards to ensure residual levels of ethylene oxide are within safe limits.
There are a limited number of online listings where manufacturers claim their masks are sterilized with ethylene oxide, also known as oxirane. But the FDA says face masks for consumers (including cloth masks) are generally not sold as sterile, and surgical masks are not typically provided as sterile.
When surgical masks are sold for use by health care professionals, they may sometimes be packaged in bulk for terminal sterilization – when products are sterilized in their final packaging – and will be labeled as sterile, the spokesperson explained. If sterilized, face masks or surgical masks would likely be sterilized using ethylene oxide.
Crittenden also claims single-use surgical masks contain polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), known by the brand name Teflon. PTFE is used in some masks, although polypropylene is the material most commonly used to make medical face masks and N95-style respirator masks.
The American Cancer Society does not report any cancer risk tied directly to PTFE, but did note perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), a chemical used to make Teflon prior to 2015, has been classified as “possibly carcinogenic to humans.” However, the American Cancer Society also stated PFOA burns off in the process of making Teflon and is not present in significant amounts in the final products.
In an email to USA TODAY, Crittenden expressed concerns about the chemicals that have since replaced PFOA and suggested they carry similar risks. According to the FDA, the science surrounding the use of these chemicals is still developing.
PTFE itself can cause coughing and flu-like symptoms through polymer fume fever, a rare disease caused by overheating the material – for example, when cooking with nonstick pans – to about 500 degrees. (The normal range for frying meat is 400 to 470 degrees.)
Full Fact, which fact-checked a claim similar to Crittenden’s, concluded there is “no evidence that anyone would suffer from (polymer fume fever) as a result of the normal wearing of a mask made with Teflon unless they were inhaling fumes from the burning of the mask.”
Masks won’t lead to lung cancer. And they do protect against the coronavirus. Claims to the contrary are false.
Our ruling: False
It is false to state that a mask will give its wearer lung cancer. Crittenden correctly states some masks include PTFE but misleads readers about potential health risks associated with this material, especially when it comes to chemicals remaining in the finished product. Similarly, ethylene oxide is a known carcinogen, but it’s not used to sterilize masks as widely as the original post claims.