The association between exposure to PM2.5 components from coal combustion and mortality in female breast cancer patients

PM2.5 components may promote the development of breast cancer and increase the risk of mortality. This study aims to investigate the associations between long-term exposure to PM2.5 components and multiple causes of mortality among women with breast cancer living in Inner Mongolia, China. We constructed an Inner Mongolia cohort of 33 952 breast cancer patients from 2012 to 2021 using data from the Inner Mongolia Regional Health Information Platform. We assessed each patient’s exposure to PM2.5 components using the Tracking Air Pollution in China database. Cox regression models were used to estimate adjusted hazard ratios and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs). A total of 3295 deaths were identified. For each interquartile increase in concentration in the 5 years before diagnosis, the all-cause mortality increased significantly by 5% (HR: 1.05, 95%CI: 1.00–1.10) for black carbon and by 4% (HR: 1.04, 95%CI: 1.00–1.09) for sulfate (SO4 2−), and decreased by 7% (HR: 0.93, 95%CI: 0.88–0.98) for nitrate (NO3 −). An association between organic matter and an increased all-cause mortality was also observed. Similar results were found for associations with risk of death from breast cancer-specific causes, cardio-cerebrovascular disease (CCVD) causes, and respiratory causes. Stronger associations were observed in older age groups and in Han Chinese patients. Our results showed that long-term exposure to black carbon, organic matter, and SO4 2− were more responsible for the increased risk of death from all causes, breast cancer-specific causes, CCVD causes, and respiratory causes. This suggests that more effective measures to control coal combustion emissions in Inner Mongolia are urgently needed. The elderly and Han Chinese populations may be at high risk.