Ovarian cancer is the most lethal gynecologic malignancy and early detection of ovarian cancer is important for prognosis. Human epididymal secretory protein 4 (HE4) elevation has been studied as a crucial biomarker for ovarian cancer. There are currently many organic pollutants in the environment including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The purpose of our study was to reveal the effects of PAHs and HE4 on the risk of ovarian cancer.The potential pathogenic mechanism of PAHs for ovarian cancer is inferred to be mediated by the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) present in the different ovarian cells. Subsequent AhR signaling pathways are promising carcinogenic with higher performance of AhR in ovarian cancer cell lines. The results indicated the PAH exposure was associated with elevated HE4 levels and a higher risk of ovarian cancer.