A History of Chemical Carcinogens
A Look at the chemicals that cause cancer
There are many people who say that we don’t know what causes cancer. This is incorrect. While we may not know how cancer develops, we already know quite a bit about things that cause cancer. In fact, the first cause of cancer caused by an external agent was described in1761 by Dr. John Hill of London, a physician, botanist and medical writer. Tobacco was first used by the native Americans, and mention of its use came from explorers of the New World. By 1614, it was widely in use in Europe with an estimated 7000 shops in London. Smoking tobacco was replaced in polite society by snuffing, a type of smokeless tobacco. A pinch of ground up tobacco is inhaled or ‘snuffed’ usually after putting it on the back of the hand between the thumb and first finger. This area is sometimes called the ‘anatomic snuff box’ for that reason. In 1761, Dr. Hill described two case histories of ‘polypusses’ of the nose, which he believed were cancer. This was the first known description of a chemical (tobacco snuffing) causing cancer. There is some controversy as to whether there is truly a link, but given the rarity of its use, having gone out of style along with the monocle and topcoat, is no longer of much significance. Also given how snuffing tobacco gives you a highly unattractive ‘Adolf Hitler’ look, it is no surprise about its fall…
