PFAS Update: Camp Lejeune & Cancer
This week the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) released a study meant to discover if there was a link between increased cancer incidences and living or working at Camp Lejeune. Between PFAS contamination and industrial chemicals like trichloroethylene, or TCE, in the drinking water, service members and civilians working on the base were exposed to high levels of known carcinogens throughout their time on the base. This study shows that the rate of cancer within the Camp Lejeune community is significantly higher than that of the general population. They found that Marines and Navy personnel increased their risk of leukemia and lymphoma as well as cancers of the lung, breast, larynx, esophagus, thyroid, and soft tissues. Civilians suffered an increased risk of myeloid, breast, and lung cancers. The residences of Camp Lejeune were also compared to the personnel at Camp Pendleton and the results concluded that the key difference was the contaminated water. EWG summarizes this story in a full article here. - Click to Read More.
