List of Cancer Clusters

This is a list of cancer clusters. A cancer cluster is a statistical event, which may or may not have a cause other than chance. There are other cancer clusters that occur without any obvious source of carcinogens.

North America
Date Disease Location Number Source Refs
1917–1927 Osteosarcoma New Jersey, Connecticut, Illinois 86 Radium
1938–1971 Adenocarcinoma U.S.A. 750 diethylstilbestrol
1963–1999 Lung cancer, Mesothelioma Libby, Montana 56 vermiculite
1967–1973 Liver angiosarcoma (Hemangiosarcoma) Louisville, Kentucky 4 vinyl chloride monomer
1968–1995 Leukemia, Lymphoma Camp Lejeune, North Carolina (see Camp Lejeune water contamination) 13 trichloroethylene
1,2-dichloroethylene
tetrachloroethylene
methylene chloride
vinyl chloride
1973–1982 Brain, CNS cancer Cooke County, Texas 16-29 Unknown
1979–1996 Brain, CNS cancer Toms River, New Jersey 90+ SAN trimer
styrene
acrylonitrile
1981–1986 Leukemia Woburn, Massachusetts 21 Chloroform
Tetrachloroethylene
Trichloroethylene
1,2-Dichloroethene
Arsenic
1982–1984 Testicular cancer Fulton County, New York 3 dimethylformamide (DMF)
2-ethoxyethanol
2-ethoxyethyl acetate
2-butoxyethanol
1987–1999 Brain cancer, Leukemia, Lymphoma Wilmington, Massachusetts 20 Unknown
N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA)
1997–2002 Leukemia, rhabdomyosarcoma Fallon, Nevada 17 Unknown
Tungsten
Arsenic
Chlorpyrifos
DDE
Benzene in jet fuel
1996–2006 Leukemia, Brain Tumors, lymphoma, Other Forms Clyde, Ohio 35 Mostly Children Unknown
1953–2010 wide range of cancers Shannon, Quebec 400 trichloroethylene
Europe
Date Disease Location Number Source Refs
1968–1995 Leukemia Seascale, Sellafield, England 9 Unsure
studies indicate a correlation with paternal preconceptional irradiation (PPI)
1978–1993 Leukemia La Hague, Normandy, France 27 Unknown
(speculated to be tritium)
1980s Leukemia, Brain tumors East Yorkshire, UK 13 Unproven link to Capper Pass tin smelter in Melton; Polonium 210, Lead, Arsenic and other metal emitter
1990–2005 Leukemia Krümmel (Kruemmel), Elbmarsch, Germany 16 Unknown
(speculated to be actinide, especially Plutonium241 of unknown origin that was found in the area or tritium from a nearby nuclear power plant)
India
Date Disease Location Number Source Refs
mid 1980s Skin Lesions, Arsenicosis West Bengal, India Unknown Arsenic

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