Concern is growing in Ladera Ranch over a string of children who have been diagnosed with a rare form of cancer and whether there could be an environmental link in the tiny bedroom community.
Read more Landslide in China’s Chongqing kills at least 8 and leaves 34 missing
As many as nine kids have been diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma since 2007 in the south Orange County community, according to Jackie French, a Ladera Ranch mother and advocate. This includes 17-year-old Brody Matteson, who died in March nearly two years after his diagnosis. Ewing sarcoma is diagnosed in only about 200 children per year.
On Thursday, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli called on the Environmental Protection Agency to investigate environmental concerns in Ladera Ranch, an unincorporated area with a population of roughly 26,000.
“My office has been made aware of recent reports of multiple pediatric Ewing sarcoma cases within the Ladera Ranch community,” Essayli wrote in a letter to EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin. “Residents are raising concerns about a potential cancer cluster and whether environmental factors may warrant further evaluation.”
The OC Health Care Agency said it is conducting its own review of cancer data along with representatives from the California Cancer Registry, the UC Irvine cancer center and the Orange County Agricultural Commissioner’s Office. In an emailed statement, a spokesperson said, “Findings will be shared in upcoming weeks.”
State Sen. Catherine Blakespear, who represents south Orange County, called the cancer cases “deeply concerning” and promised that as chair of the Senate Environmental Quality Committee, she would “stay personally engaged” until the community has answers.
Some residents have blamed pesticide use, though evidence is needed to establish a link. According to the American Cancer Society, there are no known environmental causes that lead to Ewing sarcoma, but studies have linked childhood cancers to environmental contaminants.
It’s very difficult to prove causation in cancer research, said Bruce Blumberg, a UC Irvine professor in the departments of Developmental Biology and Cell Biology and a scientific adviser for the advocacy group Non-Toxic Neighborhoods. But he said the benefits of being cautious with pesticides outweigh the costs.
“It just doesn’t make any sense to use lots of toxic chemicals to get rid of weeds and ants — these are not public health problems,” he said. “It’s like setting off nuclear warheads to cure an invasion of rabbits.”
A Change.org petition with more than 3,800 signatures is calling on the Ladera Ranch Maintenance Corp., or LARMAC, to suspend the spray of pesticides, particularly Lifeline, an herbicide with the active ingredient glufosinate-ammonium, which is banned in Europe.
Read more Top 5 storylines for Mission Viejo’s South County passing tournament
“The cost of being wrong about suspending pesticides is weeds,” the petition reads. “The cost of being wrong about continuing them is our children’s health.”
At a community meeting last week, LARMAC agreed to create an advisory board to review its practices. LARMAC did not respond to a Southern California News Group request for comment.
Matteson’s mother, Megan, could not be reached for comment, but she told NBC Los Angeles that her son was “an outdoor kid.” After complaining of back pain, doctors found the tumor on his spine. Less than three years later, he was gone.
His mother said that soon after his death, she heard from the families of five other children diagnosed with the same disease.
But the problem is bigger than children’s cancer, and it goes beyond Ladera Ranch, French said.
She said she’s been aware of the problem for the past 10 years, and, in that period, said she has heard about around 60 self-reported cases of cancer in the region. This includes the nine cases of Ewing sarcoma, four cases of adult lymphoma, three brain tumors, and more than a dozen breast cancer diagnoses.
After she and four friends developed breast cancer in the same year, French said, “That’s when I was like, OK, we have to look into this. This is too weird.”
Similarly, a group of Irvine moms mobilized in 2019 after several cancer cases emerged, and the city agreed to adopt an organics-first policy on city-controlled land.
French’s observations are supported by data, according to a City of Hope Orange County report. Compared to surrounding counties, Orange County has the highest rate of cancer in people under 50, particularly breast, colon and lung cancer, the report found. And rates of breast cancer in women under 50 are rising in Orange County, according to the findings.
Read more England, France disappointed to play for World Cup bronze but say they have a ‘duty’ to win
“Public health officials should be looking into this,” Blumberg said.