Kidney cancer rates near Pfas factory in Lancashire a ‘major source of concern’

Concerns have been raised about the conclusions drawn by a government-funded study that looked at rates of kidney cancer in the vicinity of a factory using forever chemicals near Blackpool . Pfoa, which is a known carcinogenic forever chemical that was globally banned in 2020, was emitted from the AGC Chemicals Europe factory in Thornton-Cleveleys, a town north of Blackpool, between the 1950s and 2012. During this period, approximately 49 tonnes of Pfoa were emitted into the air. The factory, which AGC Chemicals Europe bought in 1999, stopped using Pfoa in 2012. Pfas, short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are commonly known as forever chemicals because they do not break down in the environment. Pfoa was used by AGC Chemicals Europe to make PTFE, another type of forever chemical used to make the non-stick coatings of cookware. As part of continuing investigations in Blackpool, experts from Lancashire county council, the UK Health Security Agency, NHS partners, the National Disease Registration Service, Wyre council and the Environment Agency formed a health cell and carried out a screening of cancer rates between 2003 and 2022 in several small geographic areas within a 5km radius of the factory. The screening did not find higher than expected rates for most cancers, but it found that two areas, one south-east of the factory and one north of Blackpool, had “higher than expected” rates of kidney cancer. International research has linked Pfoa exposure to kidney cancer. …