40 men from Camp Lejeune now report breast cancer

40 men from Camp Lejeune now report breast cancer
By William R. Levesque, Times Staff Writer
In Print: Wednesday, October 7, 2009
A Florida man with male breast cancer says he has now identified 39 other men with the rare disease who all share one thing: They lived at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina.

The numbers surprise scientists studying water contamination at the Marine Corps installation where up to a million Marines and family members may have been exposed to tainted water during 30 years ending in the late 1980s.

Among them are more than 12,000 Floridians who have signed up for a health survey.

"This is statistically unheard of," said Tallahassee resident Mike Partain, 41, a breast cancer survivor who was born at the base and is looking for others like himself. "We've got a cancer cluster that defies explanation."

The cluster is expected to be discussed Thursday when the U.S. Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs holds a hearing on contamination at U.S. military installations. A Marine Corps major general is expected to testify, as will Partain.
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40 men from Camp Lejeune now report breast cancer