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The aluminum-based compounds in antiperspirants — their active ingredients — keep sweat from getting to the surface of the skin by blocking the sweat glands.

There’s a concern that if the skin absorbs these aluminum compounds, they can affect the estrogen receptors of breast cells.

However, according to the American Cancer Society, there’s no clear link between cancer and the aluminum in antiperspirants because:

• Breast cancer tissue doesn’t appear to have more aluminum than normal tissue.
• Only a tiny amount of aluminum is absorbed (0.0012 percent) based on research on antiperspirants containing aluminum chlorohydrate.

Other research indicating that there’s no connection between breast cancer and underarm products includes the following:

• A 2002 studyTrusted Source of 793 women with no history of breast cancer and 813 women with breast cancer showed no increased breast cancer rate for those women who used deodorants and antiperspirants in their armpit area.
• A smaller-scale 2006 studyTrusted Source supported the findings of the 2002 study.
• A 2016 systematic reviewTrusted Source concluded that there’s no link between increased breast cancer risk and antiperspirant, but the study also suggested there’s a strong need for further research.

Antiperspirants and deodorants work in different ways to reduce body odor. Antiperspirants reduce sweat, and deodorants increase skin acidity, which odor-causing bacteria don’t like.

While there are rumors linking antiperspirants to cancer, research suggests that antiperspirants don’t cause cancer.

However, studies also recommend that further research is needed to study the potential link between breast cancer and antiperspirants. So think about it?