EPA, FDA Challenged by ‘Systematic Review’ of Chemicals

The Environmental Protection Agency and the Food and Drug Administration are grappling with the time, cost and scientific challenges of using detailed toxicity data evaluation methods called “systematic review” to assess the health and other impacts of chemicals, according to agency officials and consultants at a recent workshop.

“Systematic review doesn’t solve even most of the controversies we have,” said Vincent Cogliano, director of the EPA’s Integrated Risk Information System, which develops toxicological reviews of chemicals.

Despite the concern he voiced, Cogliano said he fully supports IRIS’s use of systematic review approaches and he described efforts the program is making ...