{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,26]],"date-time":"2026-06-26T22:48:51Z","timestamp":1782514131219,"version":"3.54.5"},"reference-count":29,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"13","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2019,6,26]],"date-time":"2019-06-26T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1561507200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/100004802","name":"California Breast Cancer Research Program","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["19AB-2400"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["19AB-2400"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100004802","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["IJERPH"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Gold mining activities occurred throughout the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California, leaving behind persistent toxic contaminants in the soil, dust, and water that include arsenic and cadmium. Despite a high level of concern among local residents about potential exposure and high breast cancer rates, no biomonitoring data has been collected to evaluate the levels of heavy metals. We conducted a study to characterize the urinary levels of heavy metals among women in this region by working with the community in Nevada County. Sixty women provided urine samples and completed a questionnaire. We examined levels of arsenic, cadmium, and other metals in relation to the length of residency in the area, age, dietary factors, recreational activities, and smoking. We compared urinary metal levels in participants to levels in the United States National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Overall, study participants had higher urinary levels of arsenic than women in the national sample. Cadmium levels were similar to the national average, although they were elevated in women \u226535 years who had lived in the region for 10 years or more. Arsenic levels were higher among women who smoked, ate fish, ate home-grown produce, and who reported frequent hiking or trail running, although these differences were not statistically significant. This study established a successful community\u2013research partnership, which facilitated community dialogue about possible human health consequences of living in a mining-impacted area.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ijerph16132252","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2019,6,26]],"date-time":"2019-06-26T07:24:17Z","timestamp":1561533857000},"page":"2252","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":6,"title":["Heavy Metals in California Women Living in a Gold Mining-Impacted Community"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"16","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9342-5299","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Julie","family":"Von Behren","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Cancer Prevention Institute of California, Fremont, CA 94538, USA"},{"name":"Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Ruiling","family":"Liu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Cancer Prevention Institute of California, Fremont, CA 94538, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jane","family":"Sellen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Sierra Streams Institute, Nevada City, CA 95959, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5627-3401","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Christine N.","family":"Duffy","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Cancer Prevention Institute of California, Fremont, CA 94538, USA"},{"name":"Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Ryszard","family":"Gajek","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Environmental Health Laboratory, California Department of Public Health, Richmond, CA 94804, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Key-Young","family":"Choe","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Environmental Health Laboratory, California Department of Public Health, Richmond, CA 94804, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Josephine","family":"DeGuzman","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Environmental Health Laboratory, California Department of Public Health, Richmond, CA 94804, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2666-7781","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"M. Katy","family":"Janes","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Sierra Streams Institute, Nevada City, CA 95959, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Joanne","family":"Hild","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Sierra Streams Institute, Nevada City, CA 95959, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Peggy","family":"Reynolds","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Cancer Prevention Institute of California, Fremont, CA 94538, USA"},{"name":"Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2019,6,26]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"407","DOI":"10.1016\/S0169-1368(98)00009-2","article-title":"Gold production history of the United States","volume":"13","author":"Craig","year":"1998","journal-title":"Ore Geol. Rev."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Koshman, A.H., and Bergendahl, M.H. (1968). Prinicipal Gold-Producing Districts of the United States.","DOI":"10.3133\/pp610"},{"key":"ref_3","unstructured":"National Toxicology Program (2016). 14th Report on Carcinogens."},{"key":"ref_4","unstructured":"International Agency for Research on Cancer (2012). Arsenic, Metals, Fibres, and Dusts. A Review of Human Carcinogens, WHO Press."},{"key":"ref_5","unstructured":"(2018, December 06). California Cancer Registry Age-Adjusted Invasive Cancer Incidence Rates by County in California, 2006\u20132015. Available online: http:\/\/www.cancer-rates.info\/ca\/."},{"key":"ref_6","first-page":"545","article-title":"Activation of estrogen receptor-alpha by the heavy metal cadmium","volume":"14","author":"Stoica","year":"2000","journal-title":"Mol. Endocrinol."},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3595","DOI":"10.1210\/endo.141.10.7704","article-title":"Effects of arsenite on estrogen receptor-alpha expression and activity in MCF-7 breast cancer cells","volume":"141","author":"Stoica","year":"2000","journal-title":"Endocrinology"},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1081","DOI":"10.1038\/nm902","article-title":"Cadmium mimics the in vivo effects of estrogen in the uterus and mammary gland","volume":"9","author":"Johnson","year":"2003","journal-title":"Nat. Med."},{"key":"ref_9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"191","DOI":"10.1002\/jat.1135","article-title":"Metalloestrogens: An emerging class of inorganic xenoestrogens with potential to add to the oestrogenic burden of the human breast","volume":"26","author":"Darbre","year":"2006","journal-title":"J. Appl. Toxicol."},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Florea, A.M., and Busselberg, D. (2011). Metals and breast cancer: Risk factors or healing agents?. J. Toxicol.","DOI":"10.1155\/2011\/159619"},{"key":"ref_11","unstructured":"U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (1998). Method 1632. Chemical Speciation of Arsenic in Water and Tissue by Hydride Generation Quartz Furnace Atomic Absorption Spectrometry."},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1790","DOI":"10.1289\/ehp.9058","article-title":"Biomarkers of exposure: A case study with inorganic arsenic","volume":"114","author":"Hughes","year":"2006","journal-title":"Environ. Health Perspect."},{"key":"ref_13","unstructured":"National Biomonitoring Program (2019, June 10). Biomonitoring Summary on Arsenic, Available online: https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/biomonitoring\/Arsenic_BiomonitoringSummary.html."},{"key":"ref_14","unstructured":"(2019, June 18). National Center for Health Statistics National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys, Available online: https:\/\/wwwn.cdc.gov\/Nchs\/Nhanes\/continuousnhanes\/default.aspx?BeginYear=2013."},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"220","DOI":"10.1289\/ehp.8104","article-title":"Assessing the measurement precision of various arsenic forms and arsenic exposure in the National Human Exposure Assessment Survey (NHEXAS)","volume":"114","author":"Pellizzari","year":"2006","journal-title":"Environ. Health Perspect."},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"509","DOI":"10.1080\/10937400903358934","article-title":"Biomonitoring for environmental exposures to arsenic","volume":"12","author":"Orloff","year":"2009","journal-title":"J. Toxicol. Environ. Health B Crit. Rev."},{"key":"ref_17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1273","DOI":"10.1080\/19440049.2015.1052573","article-title":"Estimation of biological half-life of urinary cadmium in inhabitants after cessation of environmental cadmium pollution using a mixed linear model","volume":"32","author":"Ishizaki","year":"2015","journal-title":"Food Addit. Contam. Part A Chem. Anal. Control Expo. Risk Assess."},{"key":"ref_18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"77","DOI":"10.1080\/13547500902730698","article-title":"Biological half-life of cadmium in the urine of inhabitants after cessation of cadmium exposure","volume":"14","author":"Suwazono","year":"2009","journal-title":"Biomarkers"},{"key":"ref_19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"299","DOI":"10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2012.10.095","article-title":"A greenhouse and field-based study to determine the accumulation of arsenic in common homegrown vegetables grown in mining-affected soils","volume":"443","author":"Brusseau","year":"2013","journal-title":"Sci. Total Environ."},{"key":"ref_20","first-page":"373","article-title":"Home gardening near a mining site in an arsenic-endemic region of Arizona: Assessing arsenic exposure dose and risk via ingestion of home garden vegetables, soils, and water","volume":"454\u2013455","author":"Brusseau","year":"2013","journal-title":"Sci. Total Environ."},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"181","DOI":"10.1016\/j.envres.2015.01.020","article-title":"Metal uptake by homegrown vegetables\u2014The relative importance in human health risk assessments at contaminated sites","volume":"138","author":"Augustsson","year":"2015","journal-title":"Environ. Res."},{"key":"ref_22","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"189","DOI":"10.1016\/j.scitotenv.2015.07.018","article-title":"An assessment of health risks associated with arsenic exposure via consumption of homegrown vegetables near contaminated glassworks sites","volume":"536","author":"Gunnarsson","year":"2015","journal-title":"Sci. Total Environ."},{"key":"ref_23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"343","DOI":"10.1007\/s10653-018-0098-8","article-title":"Risk assessment of bioaccessible arsenic and cadmium exposure through rice consumption in local residents of the Mae Tao Sub-district, Northwestern Thailand","volume":"41","author":"Chanpiwat","year":"2019","journal-title":"Environ. Geochem. Health"},{"key":"ref_24","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"869","DOI":"10.1093\/jnci\/djj233","article-title":"Cadmium exposure and breast cancer risk","volume":"98","author":"McElroy","year":"2006","journal-title":"J. Natl. Cancer Inst."},{"key":"ref_25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"804","DOI":"10.18632\/aging.100226","article-title":"Environmental cadmium and breast cancer risk","volume":"2","author":"Gallagher","year":"2010","journal-title":"Aging (Albany NY)"},{"key":"ref_26","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"235","DOI":"10.1007\/s10549-013-2414-4","article-title":"Cadmium exposure and the risk of breast cancer in Japanese women","volume":"138","author":"Nagata","year":"2013","journal-title":"Breast Cancer Res. Treat."},{"key":"ref_27","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Eriksen, K.T., McElroy, J.A., Harrington, J.M., Levine, K.E., Pedersen, C., Sorensen, M., Tjonneland, A., Meliker, J.R., and Raaschou-Nielsen, O. (2017). Urinary Cadmium and Breast Cancer: A Prospective Danish Cohort Study. J. Natl. Cancer Inst., 109.","DOI":"10.1093\/jnci\/djw204"},{"key":"ref_28","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"131","DOI":"10.1080\/09603129973272","article-title":"Cancer incidence and high environmental arsenic concentrations in rural populations: Results of an ecological study","volume":"9","author":"Hinwood","year":"1999","journal-title":"Int. J. Environ. Health Res."},{"key":"ref_29","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"220","DOI":"10.1080\/09603123.2011.628792","article-title":"Cancer incidence and pattern of arsenic concentration in drinking water wells in Cordoba, Argentina","volume":"22","author":"Aballay","year":"2012","journal-title":"Int. J. Environ. Health Res."}],"container-title":["International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/1660-4601\/16\/13\/2252\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,11]],"date-time":"2025-10-11T13:01:16Z","timestamp":1760187676000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/1660-4601\/16\/13\/2252"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2019,6,26]]},"references-count":29,"journal-issue":{"issue":"13","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2019,7]]}},"alternative-id":["ijerph16132252"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/ijerph16132252","relation":{},"ISSN":["1660-4601"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1660-4601","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2019,6,26]]}}}