Early German research indicates therapeutic apheresis—a blood-filtering treatment for severe cholesterol disorders—may also reduce circulating levels of some PFAS and certain microplastics immediately after a session. Results varied by lab and method: one analysis (14 patients) found up to a 25% drop in four PFAS, while a different technique (4 patients) reported mean reductions of 43.5%–75.8% across five PFAS. Microplastic findings were mixed and the study did not assess whether reductions persisted or improved health outcomes; larger, standardized studies are needed.
Therapeutic Apheresis May Also Remove Some PFAS And Microplastics, Early Study Finds
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A medical procedure used for hard-to-treat cholesterol disorders—therapeutic apheresis—may remove more than lipids from the bloodstream. Early results from a small German study suggest the treatment can lower circulating levels of some per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and certain microplastics immediately after a session.
Therapeutic apheresis diverts blood through an external device that selectively filters components such as lipoproteins before returning the cleaned blood to the patient. The researchers collected blood samples immediately before and after treatment and analyzed them for persistent pollutants including PFAS, which are used in nonstick coatings, water-resistant fabrics and some food packaging.
What the Study Found
Results varied by laboratory and analytic method. In one analysis of 14 patients treated with double-filtration plasmapheresis, four common PFAS fell by up to 25% after a single session. A second laboratory, using a different technique on samples from four patients, reported mean reductions of 43.5% to 75.8% across five PFAS compounds.
"What we consider the most important finding of our study is that therapeutic apheresis...also reduced circulating levels of PFAS and microplastics," said Charlotte Steenblock, a molecular endocrinologist at the Dresden University of Technology. She noted the result was unexpected because PFAS and microplastics are chemically distinct from lipoproteins and were not the intended targets.
Mixed Results For Microplastics And Important Caveats
Microplastic measurements were inconsistent. Some plastics, such as polyethylene, declined in the small patient sample, while other types showed no change or even increases after treatment. The authors caution that microplastic analysis is highly sensitive to contamination—measurements can be affected by environmental exposure during collection and by the plastic tubing, filters and bags used in apheresis itself.
Crucially, this pilot study measured only short-term changes in circulating blood levels. It did not determine whether reductions persisted, whether pollutants stored in tissues (for example, liver, kidney or brain) were affected, or whether any clinical health benefits would follow. Therapeutic apheresis is an intensive, targeted medical intervention for specific conditions and is not a general detox treatment.
Why This Matters—and What Comes Next
If confirmed in larger, controlled studies with standardized testing, these findings could help scientists identify which blood components PFAS and microplastics bind to and whether targeted filtration might reduce circulating pollutant burdens. The researchers call for bigger trials, consistent laboratory methods, and careful control of contamination to validate the results and assess clinical significance.
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