High levels of cancer from ‘forever chemicals’ in specific American region
In this DML Report…
High levels of cancer-linked PFAS 'forever chemicals' persist in North Carolina residents' blood and Cape Fear River water, revealing decades-long contamination from Chemours' Fayetteville Works plant (formerly DuPont). Industrial discharges since the 1980s contaminated the Cape Fear River Basin, serving drinking water to 500,000 people in Wilmington and surrounding areas. A North Carolina State University study analyzed 119 archived blood samples collected from Wilmington residents between 2010 and 2016, testing for 56 PFAS compounds, while 47 PFAS were measured in local water samples from upstream and downstream of the plant, including finished drinking water. Contamination, publicly exposed in 2017 with GenX detection, traces directly to plant effluents, confirmed by matching blood and water profiles.
Researchers detected 34 PFAS in blood, with 10 in nearly every sample and five—TFA, PFMOAA, PFOS, PFOA, PFPrA—appearing in 90-97% of cases. Ultrashort-chain PFAS TFA and PFMOAA dominated: TFA comprised 70% of water PFAS at 110,000 ng/L, PFMOAA at 38,000 ng/L; PFMOAA levels in blood were seven times higher than PFOA. Unlike declining older PFAS, these held steady from 2010-2016, signaling ongoing exposure. TFA in Wilmington water exceeded a Dutch health limit by nearly 50 times (2200 ng/L guideline). PFAS accumulate in blood and tissues for years, disrupting hormones, damaging liver/kidneys/heart, raising cancer/cardiovascular risks, causing infertility/reproductive issues, and linked to birth defects (TFA in rabbits/rats) and developmental/liver harm (PFMOAA in animals).
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Findings, published Monday in Environmental Science & Technology, underscore research gaps on ultrashort-chain PFAS once thought non-accumulative but now proven pervasive and risky. Lead researcher Detlef Knappe, NC State professor, stated: “‘For reference, one European guideline recommends a drinking water level of 2200 ng/L for TFA. Our sample contained over 50 times that concentration.’” No U.S. federal limits exist for TFA or PFMOAA due to regulatory lags, despite known dangers matching longer-chain PFAS. The study confirms plant-sourced PFAS drive human exposure via water and food chain, with no observed decline post-2017 awareness.