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BIS(2-CHLOROETHYL)ETHER
CAS No: 111-44-4
I. PHYSICAL AND CHEMICAL PROPERTIES (From HSDB, 1994)
Molecular weight 143.02
Boiling point
176-178.5°C
Melting point
-24.5°C
Vapor pressure 0.7 mm Hg @ 20°C
Air concentration conversion 1 ppm = 5.8 mg/m 3
II.
HEALTH ASSESSMENT VALUES
Unit Risk Factor: 7.1 E-4 (µg/m 3 ) -1
Slope Factor: 2.5 E+0 (mg/kg-day) -1
[Calculated from a cancer potency factor derived by RCHAS/OEHHA (CDHS, 1988)]
III.
CARCINOGENIC EFFECTS
Human Studies
There are no human carcinogenicity studies available for bis(2-chloroethyl)ether (BCEE).
Animal Studies
Two studies address the carcinogenicity of bis(2-chloroethyl)ether by the oral route of exposure. Innes
et al. (1969) administered 100 mg/kg body weight bis(2-chloroethyl)ether by oral gavage to two F 1
generation strains of mice termed X (C57BL/6 × C3H/Anf) and Y (C57BL/6 × AKH) (18/sex/strain)
from day 7 to 28 of life, without adjusting the initial dose to account for weight gain. After 28 days,
BCEE was added to feed at a concentration of 300 ppm for 76 weeks. Surviving animals were
sacrificed at 80 weeks. Ninety animals of each strain were included as controls. Tumor incidence in
surviving animals is summarized in Table 1. A statistically significant increase in hepatomas (p < 0.05)
was noted in both males and females of strain X and in males of strain Y. No other tumor type showed
significant increases in incidence.
Charles River CD rats (26/sex/group) were treated with 0, 25 or 50 mg/kg-day bis(2-chloroethyl)ether
by gavage for 18 months by Weisburger et al. (1981). Animals were observed for 2 years. No
carcinogenic effects were observed, although the authors report increased mortality among the highdose
females and reduction in mean weight among high-dose males and females.
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