DuPont Reports First-Phase Results of Health Study Examining PFOA Exposure
To Date, No Human Health Effects Known to be Caused by PFOA;Several Statistical Observations Merit Further Study

PARKERSBURG, W. Va.,  January 11, 2005  —  DuPont has reported to its employees and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency the results of an initial-phase health study of more than 1,000 employees from its Washington Works facility here.

The study, based on 62 blood and urine tests, found no association with PFOA (perfluorooctanoic acid) blood levels in nearly all of the results reported, including:

• No correlation between liver functions and exposure to PFOA;
• No correlation between blood counts and exposure to PFOA;
• No correlation between any cancer markers measured and exposure to PFOA with respect to prostate cancer, leukemia, or multiple myeloma.

One exception was an approximate 10 percent increase in total cholesterol (most of which was in the LDL fraction) and a rise in triglycerides among some individuals having PFOA levels of greater than 1000 parts per billion – levels 200 times higher than that found in the general population. About 75 percent of the people in this group did not have high cholesterol. The study data did not indicate that PFOA was or was not the cause of the increases in serum cholesterol and triglycerides. In contrast, no associations were seen between PFOA exposure and "good cholesterol" (HDL) and CRP, another indicator of cardiac risk. The study also observed slight increases in uric acid and iron among employees with the highest PFOA blood levels.

According to Sol Sax, M.D., DuPont Chief Medical Officer, "The association of PFOA with the increases in total cholesterol and the other end points in this study was observed in people in an industrial setting. Given the extremely small levels of PFOA exposure generally seen outside the work setting, it is my medical opinion that no association would be seen in the general public."

The objective of this first-phase study was to identify any association between PFOA and the results of the 62 tests. DuPont will use the data produced by this study to design the next phase of research to investigate if PFOA levels are the cause or effect of the few statistical observations found in the study.

The results of this study were reviewed by DuPont's Epidemiology Review Board, which is comprised of independent experts from Georgetown University, Yale University, the University of Washington, Johns Hopkins University and the University of Massachusetts – Lowell.

DuPont has provided individual test results to all employees who participated in the study so that they can review the results with their personal physicians. Company physicians also are available to employees who would like to discuss individual results and/or the overall findings of the study.

"This study is part of DuPont's ongoing research of PFOA in cooperation with regulators, industry and academic communities to expand the understanding of the compound," said Robert Rickard, Ph.D., Director of DuPont Haskell Laboratory for Health & Environmental Sciences. "DuPont's commitment to objective and transparent research of PFOA remains strong. As we have done today, we will continue to share our findings with the public as more data become available. We will continue to consult with medical and other scientific experts to design and conduct appropriate follow-up studies."

In June of last year, DuPont completed a peer-reviewed study of products produced either using PFOA or containing trace amounts of the compound that concluded that use of these commercial or consumer products would not result in any detectable exposure to PFOA. "Taken together, this study and the Washington Works study reinforce that our products are safe for consumers," Dr. Rickard said. "Also, as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has stated, there is 'no reason for consumers to stop using any consumer or industrial related products' because of concerns about PFOA."

Over the past five years, DuPont has reduced emissions of PFOA from its U.S. operations by 98 percent and has designed systems that capture and recycle or destroy PFOA. Global emissions have been reduced by 90 percent. DuPont has offered its new technology to others who use PFOA.

PFOA is an essential processing aid used to produce fluoropolymers, or high performance materials, that find application in products ranging from firefighting foam to phone cables and computer chips. The aerospace, transportation and electronics industries rely on products manufactured using PFOA for the purity, reliability and durability of many of their key systems.

DuPont is a science company. Founded in 1802, DuPont puts science to work by creating sustainable solutions essential to a better, safer, healthier life for people everywhere. Operating in more than 70 countries, DuPont offers a wide range of innovative products and services for markets including agriculture, nutrition, electronics, communications, safety and protection, home and construction, transportation and apparel.

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01/11/05