Community Corner

Coldwater Creek: State Health Department Investigating Cancer Cluster Instances

Due to public concern, the Missouri Health Department has teamed up with the University of Missouri to compile statistics on instances of cancer in North County.

Because of the growing concern with rare instances of cancer in North County near Coldwater Creek, the Missouri Department of Health & Senior Services (DHSS) has epidemiologists looking into cancer rates.

The epidemiologists, which investigate the causes of disease and other public health problems to prevent them from spreading or from happening again, will look at figures from zip codes including 63031, 63033, 63034, 63042, 63134, 63138.

Gena Terlizzi with DHSS Office of Public Information said the state will be working with the University of Missouri on the research.

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"DHSS and the Missouri Cancer Registry and Research Center at the University of Missouri-Columbia are performing the analysis to determine if the cancer rates are higher than expected based on the rates in the State of Missouri," she said. " We expect to have this analysis completed and the findings issued within the next month."

Terlizzi said the report will be posted online some time in March. The team will examine cancer cases between 1996 and 2004.

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The U.S. Army Corp of Engineers (USACE) reports it has remediated most of the contaminated soil in and around the Clodwater Creek area and shipped it out of state, according to its Winter newsletter. According to the newsletter:

"Potential radiological contamination in Coldwater Creek can be attributed to runoff or windblown migration of the prior storage of uranium processing residues and wastes at (2) St. Louis Airport Site Vicinity Properties (SLAPS) and at the Hazelwood Interim Storage Site (HISS). The USACE removed the SLAPS and HISS wastes, which resulted from the ore-processing activities at SLDS. The USACE routinely conducts sampling in Coldwater Creek as part of the Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program."

If you think your illness may be linked to the creek there is a form tracking all instances. To fill it out click here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/coldwater_creek_missouri

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To read more on Coldwater Creek News:

  • Radioactive Waste in our Groundwater
  • Second Coldwater Creek Lawsuit Filed Against Hazelwood-Based Covidien and Its Mallinckrodt Division
  • What People Near Hazelwood Are Saying About Coldwater Creek Nuclear Contamination
  • MoDOT Closing Eastbound I-270 Lanes from Lindbergh Blvd. to I-170 Starting Friday
  • Missouri Coalition for the Environment Hosting Public Meeting on West Lake Landfill Superfund Site
  • Mallinckrodt Partners to Relieve Symptoms of Rheumatoid Arthritis


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