Chemical Compound in Dupont's Teflon a Likely Carcinogen
Compound in Teflon A 'Likely Carcinogen'
By Juliet Eilperin Washington Post Staff Writer Wednesday, June 29, 2005;
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/28/AR2005062801458.html
The Environmental Protection Agency's own scientific advisory panel has identified perfluorooctanoic acid, a chemical compound used to make Teflon, as a "likely carcinogen" in a report it plans to submit to the agency next month.
The EPA is in the midst of a major investigation into how the compound, which is used to make stain- and stick-resistant surfaces and materials for products including Gore-Tex fabrics and pizza boxes, gets into consumers' blood and whether it affects their health. It is also seeking millions of dollars in fines from DuPont Co., which makes PFOA in Parkersburg, W.Va., on the grounds that the chemical giant failed for 20 years to report possible health and environmental problems linked to the compound.
The scientific advisory panel does not draw conclusions on whether using products made with PFOA, such as nonstick pans, poses a cancer risk. Instead, it says that the fact that animal studies have identified four different kinds of tumors in both male and female rats and mice that had been exposed to the compound convinced a majority of its members that it is a likely carcinogen.
© 2005 The Washington Post Company
Health Screenings for Teflon to Start
CHARLESTON, W.Va. - Tens of thousands of Ohio and West Virginia residents could be tested over the next year to determine if their health has been affected by drinking water containing a chemical used to make the nonstick substance Teflon.
DuPont Co. agreed in February to pay for the screenings to settle a class-action lawsuit. Teflon is one of the company's most popular products; the substance can be found in everything from cookware and clothing to car parts and flooring.
The tests will begin this month for residents who receive their drinking water from six public water districts, or from private wells within the districts, where concentrations of ammonium perfluorooctanoate, also known as PFOA and C8, have been found.
The water supplies are near DuPont's Washington Works plant, along the Ohio River near Parkersburg. About 80,000 residents live in the districts, and it's hoped at least 60,000 will participate in the screening.
Only residents who received the water for at least a year before December 3, 2004, are eligible.
Each blood sample will be subjected to 51 tests, including those that check for the presence of C8, organ function and cancer markers.
DuPont agreed to the health screenings to settle a 2001 lawsuit filed by residents who alleged the company intentionally withheld and misrepresented information concerning the nature and extent of the human health threat posed by C8 in drinking water. About $70 million has been allocated for resident payments and lab work.
Though used since World War II, C8's long-term effects on humans are unknown.
A federal scientific review panel has said the chemical is "likely" to be carcinogenic to humans, but DuPont officials have disputed the draft report.
In a separate matter, DuPont has set aside $15 million to settle EPA complaints that the company failed to report information over two decades about the potential environmental and human health risks of the chemical, although no agreement has been reached. In May, the company was served with a subpoena from a federal grand jury in Washington, D.C., for documents related to the chemical.
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DuPont: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/ap/ap_on_he_me/storytext/dupont_teflon_lawsuit/15724528/SIG=10ngjr8h9/*http://www.dupont.com
EPA's PFOA page: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/ap/ap_on_he_me/storytext/dupont_teflon_lawsuit/15724528/SIG=11cj5a1sv/*http://www.epa.gov/opptintr/pfoa/index.htm
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