Californians Could Win Cancer Warnings on Common Sunscreen Ingredient
Benzophenone, a chemical California lists as causing cancer, can form inside your sunscreen the longer it sits in the bottle. The Australian Sunscreen Council is pushing for Australia to ban it.
A California health group has put sunscreen makers on notice. The Center for Environmental Health (CEH) says some sunscreens expose users to benzophenone (Center for Environmental Health [CEH], 2026a, p. 1; CEH, 2026b, p. 1). California lists that chemical as a cause of cancer (Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment [OEHHA], 2012b). And the sunscreens carry no warning.
Proposition 65 (officially the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986) is a California law that requires businesses to provide clear and reasonable warnings before exposing people to chemicals known to cause cancer, birth defects, or other reproductive harm (OEHHA, n.d.-a, n.d.-b).
CEH has filed two 60-day notices. Each says "Benzophenone is found in the products, which are applied to the skin" (CEH, 2026a, p. 1; CEH, 2026b, p. 1). It can get in through "dermal absorption directly through the skin", the notices say (CEH, 2026a, p. 1; CEH, 2026b, pp. 1-2). Or by "hand-to-mouth contact" (CEH, 2026a, p. 1; CEH, 2026b, p. 2). And "No clear and reasonable Proposition 65 warning is provided" (CEH, 2026a, pp. 1-2; CEH, 2026b, p. 2).
No lawsuit has followed yet. As at 10 October 2026, the Attorney General's records show no complaint, settlement or judgment on either notice (State of California Office of the Attorney General, n.d.).
Tumours in animals
Why does California list benzophenone? It relied on the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). IARC found "sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in experimental animals" (OEHHA, 2012a). It classed benzophenone as "possibly carcinogenic to humans (Group 2B)" (International Agency for Research on Cancer [IARC], 2013, p. 301). It had no data on cancer in humans (IARC, 2013, p. 301).
The animal results were stark. In feeding studies, benzophenone "significantly increased the incidence of hepatocellular adenoma", a liver tumour, in male mice (IARC, 2013, p. 300). It also increased kidney tumours: "renal tubule adenoma in male rats" (IARC, 2013, p. 300).
Canada found more. Health Canada's 2021 screening assessment is reported by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), Australia's medicines regulator. It found long-term oral exposure "induced kidney adenoma and leukemia in male rats" (Therapeutic Goods Administration [TGA], n.d.-b, p. 251). It also found "liver tumours in male and possibly female mice" (TGA, n.d.-b, p. 251).
Europe banned it. Australia flagged it
Europe has already acted. "The EU has prohibited the inclusion of benzophenone as an ingredient in cosmetic products," the TGA notes (TGA, 2025a, p. 15).
Australia's chemicals regulator is the Australian Industrial Chemicals Introduction Scheme (AICIS). It found "a risk to the public following repeated, long-term exposure" (TGA, 2025a, p. 15). It said that risk "requires management" (TGA, 2025a, p. 15).
The TGA's own draft risk assessment agrees. It recommends changing the rules "to mitigate the risk from chronic exposure to benzophenone" (TGA, n.d.-b, p. 256). TGA key messages released under freedom of information go further. They say the regulator "is actively addressing the concerns surrounding benzophenone in sunscreens" (TGA, n.d.-c, p. 8).
So the TGA proposed a limit. In July 2025, it proposed to exempt sunscreen with up to 383 parts per million (ppm), or 0.0383%, of benzophenone (TGA, 2025a, p. 15). That limit would apply until the product expires (TGA, 2025a, p. 15). Earlier California settlements set a much lower bar: 35 ppm in the finished sunscreen (State of California Office of the Attorney General, n.d.).
What the notices say
The first notice is dated 26 May 2026. The second is dated 18 September 2026. Both are titled "Benzophenone in Sunscreen" (CEH, 2026a, p. 1; CEH, 2026b, p. 1). Both are blunt: "The specific type of product causing these violations is sunscreen." (CEH, 2026a, p. 1; CEH, 2026b, p. 1).
The notices go back years. They say the warning has been missing "since at least May 26, 2023" (CEH, 2026a, pp. 1-2). And "since at least September 18, 2023" (CEH, 2026b, pp. 1-2).
Next could come court. CEH "intends to file a citizen enforcement lawsuit" unless the companies agree in writing to settle (CEH, 2026b, pp. 1-2). The evidence went to California's Attorney General in confidence (CEH, 2026b).
This has happened before
California has seen 75 notices like these since 2014 (State of California Office of the Attorney General, n.d.). All were about benzophenone in sunscreen or SPF products. Nineteen, filed in 2016 and 2017, named "octocrylene-containing sunscreen" (State of California Office of the Attorney General, n.d.).
Some ended in deals. In settlements filed in 2023 and 2025, sunscreen makers agreed to strict limits. Finished products could hold "no more than (i) 35 ppm of benzophenone" (State of California Office of the Attorney General, n.d.). Or the octocrylene used could hold no more than "350 ppm of benzophenone" (State of California Office of the Attorney General, n.d.).
Why benzophenone matters
The TGA's draft quotes the US National Toxicology Program. It found "some evidence of carcinogenic activity of benzophenone in male rats" (TGA, n.d.-b, p. 253). The TGA also summed up two-year feeding studies in rats and mice. "Effects were seen in all dose groups and no NOAEL was identified." (TGA, n.d.-b, p. 253). In other words, no dose was low enough to show no effect.
It gets through skin, too. In a study in monkeys, the skin absorbed benzophenone at "44% and 69% for unoccluded and occluded sites", meaning uncovered and covered skin (TGA, n.d.-b, p. 251).
How benzophenone gets into sunscreen
Benzophenone is not added as a sunscreen filter. It comes from another filter, octocrylene. The TGA says it arises "as the product ages" (TGA, 2025a, p. 15). It can also come "as an impurity in the manufacture of products containing octocrylene" (TGA, 2025a, p. 15). The older the bottle, the more there can be.
And octocrylene is everywhere. On 10 October 2026, 647 medicines on Australia's register listed it as an active ingredient (TGA, n.d.-a).
Years of delay
In 2012, California listed benzophenone as a chemical known to the state to cause cancer (OEHHA, 2012b).
In August 2023, the TGA asked the public about safe levels. Then it stalled. "The decision to introduce a regulatory limit for benzophenone was deferred" (TGA, n.d.-b, p. 249).
In 2024, the TGA's draft worked out a limit of 0.0383%, or 383 ppm. It said benzophenone should not be added as a fragrance at all, "as a precautionary approach" (TGA, n.d.-b, p. 256).
In July 2025, the TGA proposed that limit (TGA, 2025a, p. 15). The public had until 12 August 2025 to comment (TGA, 2025a, p. 4).
In September 2025, the TGA put it off again. Its expert scheduling committee "decided to defer the discussion on benzophenone" (TGA, 2025b, p. 53). The reason given was "time constrains" [sic] (TGA, 2025b, p. 53).
In 2026, the two California notices arrived. As at 11 October 2026, the TGA had published no decision on benzophenone. Its sunscreen ingredients page says the interim decision "will be published and subject to public consultation by the end of 2026" (TGA, n.d.-d).
What the Australian Sunscreen Council takes from this
The case is simple. California lists benzophenone as a cause of cancer (OEHHA, 2012b). Animal studies reviewed by IARC found liver and kidney tumours (IARC, 2013, p. 300). The European Union banned it in cosmetics from 1 December 2023 (European Commission, 2023). And in sunscreen, it forms from octocrylene "as the product ages" (TGA, 2025a, p. 15).
The TGA proposed a limit in July 2025. Then it waited.
The Australian Sunscreen Council is pushing for a ban on benzophenone and octocrylene in Australian sunscreen. One reason is the finding by Australia's chemicals regulator, AICIS, of "a risk to the public following repeated, long-term exposure" (TGA, 2025a, p. 15). It is calling on the TGA to publish its decision now.
The gaps go wider. The FDA said the public record did not contain enough safety data to classify long-used chemical filters as safe and effective (U.S. Food and Drug Administration [FDA], 2019, p. 6206). Those filters include oxybenzone, homosalate, avobenzone and octocrylene (FDA, 2019, p. 6206). The FDA also said studies indicated oxybenzone is absorbed through the skin "to a greater extent than previously understood" (FDA, 2019, p. 6206). It had been detected in human breast milk, amniotic fluid, urine and blood plasma (FDA, 2019, p. 6206).
Non-nano zinc oxide is the only broad-spectrum UV filter that is reef safe and Generally Recognized As Safe and Effective (GRASE) by the US FDA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration [NOAA], n.d.; National Park Service [NPS], n.d.; FDA, 2019, p. 6206; Beasley & Meyer, 2010; Hanrahan, 2012). On its own it protects across the full UVA and UVB range, including long UVA (Beasley & Meyer, 2010; Hanrahan, 2012).
About the Australian Sunscreen Council
The Australian Sunscreen Council is a registered Australian charity dedicated to improving the health of everyday Australians through UV education, research and evidence-based sun safety initiatives.
As Australia’s peak industry body for sunscreen safety, the Council works with scientists, medical professionals, industry experts and policymakers to advance sunscreen safety, support independent research, improve public understanding of UV exposure and promote stronger public-health standards.
ABN 64 692 134 982
Australian Sunscreen Council Editorial Team
The Council is supported by an Expert Group and may draw on advice from one or more members depending on the subject matter of a particular article, submission or publication. Members listed by the Council include (Australian Sunscreen Council, n.d.):
Dr Craig Downs, Executive Director, Haereticus Environmental Laboratory
Dr Russell Hills, cosmetic and laser dermatologist and Mohs specialist
Dr Denis Dudley, obstetrician-gynaecologist and endocrinologist
Dr Abhinandan “Rocky” Chowdhury, toxicologist
Dr Leslie Laquieze, sunscreen testing and photoprotection
Mgr. Mehrdad Mirzaei, pharmacist and photoprotection researcher
Joseph DiNardo, cosmetic toxicologist
Dr Alan Jones, skin cancer physician
Camila Biato Stopa, MSc, cosmetic scientist and pharmacist
Acknowledgment
Grok was used in the creation of this article. Always read the sunscreen label and use only as directed. Sunscreen is only one part of sun protection. Avoid prolonged sun exposure and wear protective clothing, hats, and eyewear.
References
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Center for Environmental Health. (2026b, September 18). Benzophenone in sunscreen [60-day notice of violation] (AG Number 2026-04469). State of California Office of the Attorney General. https://oag.ca.gov/system/files/prop65/notices/2026-04469.pdf
European Commission. (2023, July 19). Commission Regulation (EU) 2023/1490 of 19 July 2023 amending Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards the use in cosmetic products of certain substances classified as carcinogenic, mutagenic or toxic for reproduction. Official Journal of the European Union, L 183, 7. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32023R1490
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