Camp Lejeune polluted water linked to birth defects and childhood cancer

New study links Camp Lejeune's polluted water to birth defects, childhood cancer
Tampa Bay Times
William R. Levesque
Times Staff Writer
Friday, December 6, 2013

Federal scientists have found an increased incidence of some birth defects and cancers such as leukemia in children of mothers exposed to polluted drinking water at the Camp Lejeune Marine Corps base, according to a new federal report.

The report provides the most significant evidence yet that water may have harmed the health of those who lived at the North Carolina base, including at least 19,350 from Florida.

A draft of the much-anticipated study was released late Thursday by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry and surveyed the parents of 12,598 children who were born at Camp Lejeune from 1968 to 1985.

The study found increased incidence of neural tube defects, a serious birth defect involving an opening in the brain or spinal cord, in children whose mothers were exposed to contaminants early in pregnancy. Spina bifida is a type of NTD.

A weaker but still significant link was found between leukemia and non-Hodgkins lymphoma diagnosed before age 20 in those born at the base whose mothers were exposed to tainted water, the report said.
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