Water Resources Research Act Program

Details for Project ID 2016ND313B

Tamoxifen and Endoxifen Detections in Wastewater and Receiving Waters in North Dakota

Institute: North Dakota
Year Established: 2016 Start Date: 2016-03-01 End Date: 2017-02-28
Total Federal Funds: $5,500 Total Non-Federal Funds: $11,000

Principal Investigators: Eakalak Khan, John McEvoy

Project Summary: Despite the fact that tamoxifen and endoxifen are effective drugs for treating breast cancer, they present possible consequences on the environment. Tamoxifen and endoxifen are not completely metabolized in human body and excreted. As a result, they are released to the water environment via wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). Like other pharmaceutical compounds, these two drugs are considered environmental micropollutants. They are emerging concerns because their fate in WWTPs is not known. North Dakota has three oncology hospitals and patients around the state that contribute tamoxifen and endoxifen (as a metabolite of tamoxifen) to WWTPs and eventually natural receiving waters. The concentrations of tamoxifen and endoxifen have never been measured in wastewater, treated wastewater, and surface waters in North Dakota. The proposed research has following objectives: 1) Establish methods to detect tamoxifen and endoxifen; 2) Determine actual concentrations of tamoxifen and endoxifen in wastewater, treated wastewater, surface waters receiving treated wastewater, wastewater sludge, and surface water sediments.; and 3) Determine the partition coefficient of tamoxifen and endoxifen from water to solid phase.