The study, by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh, found that extracts from catfish caught from waters high on sewage and industrial waste cause breast cancer cells to multiply.
The findings of the study were presented Wednesday at the annual meeting of the American Public Health Association in Washington.
The study found the fish contained substances that mimic the actions of oestrogen, the female hormone.
As fish can concentrate some kinds of chemicals in water in their bodies, the results suggest that pharmaceutical oestrogen and xeno-oestrogenic chemicals may be making their way into the region's waterways.
The study, by Conrad D. Volz and colleagues, exposed extracts of catfish to oestrogen-responsive and oestrogen non-responsive human breast cancer cells.
Fish from polluted waters could aggravate cancer
US - Fish caught in highly polluted waters could cause cells of some kinds of cancers to multiply rapidly, a new study has found.