Childhood cancer in Hackettstown

Is anyone else concerned about the amount of childhood cancer cases in Hackettstown over the past couple of years. Seems increasingly alarming to me and would love to hear your opinions

Alarmedparent ✉
May '19

From The American Cancer Society:

"Childhood cancers make up less than 1% of all cancers diagnosed each year. About 10,590 children in the United States under the age of 15 will be diagnosed with cancer in 2018. Childhood cancer rates have been rising slightly for the past few decades."

Here is a prior thread discussing children with cancer in Hackettstown.

http://www.hackettstownlife.com/forum/643004

Greg ✉
May '19

Sadly, cancer overall has risen because of the quality of food and water that is consumed, the chemicals around us and environmental factors. It takes some work to avoid these factors and most people either don’t even think about it or don’t want to spend the time or money to do so. But I think it’s worth doing, especially to help protect those with smaller bodies like children and animals.

Jules ✉
May '19

i think between cancer and the autism rates it has something to do with all these power lines as well along with all these cell towers everywhere. Look at the honey bee population you cannot go out in the yard or anywhere really and find a honey bee. Not a wasp not those nasty big bees. Those towers remit something and if it’s not good for the honey bees that can’t make there way back to the hive it can’t be good for us

Drew ✉
May '19

Thank you for posting the thread from previous years. It was very interesting to read. We too do NOT drink tap water. I know that everywhere has cancer and it’s becoming more and more popular I just feel like the 3 small children I’ve know in the area in less than 6 years seems like a lot for such young lives without a small town. . And I’m sure there’s more I don’t even know about.
Ps I have plenty of bees in my yard, so nothings keeping them away from us.

Alarmedparent ✉
May '19

This is easy. The top NJ cancers are breast, prostrate, and lung. So, at birth we remove the breasts; since this will dull sex appeal. prostrate removal at birth may be an improvement. Bingo, solved most of it..

All dark (and really bad) humor aside, NJ, as well as surrounding states ranks higher in cancer than most states. South Jersey worse than North (smoking perhaps), affluent counties worse than less. So that puts us in a higher, lower, range for cancer detection in NJ.

Here's the weird part. For death from cancer, NJ ranks lower than most states. More affluent counties do better than less.

So we detect more cancer yet cure even more cancer than states with lower cancer rates.

This is a 2012 study, noted the drop from 2004 to 2008. Current studies pretty much bear up these stats but may add more info as well.

"ontrary to what might seem to be conventional wisdom, New Jersey's most urban counties in the north have the lowest adjusted cancer rates, while its wealthiest suburbs have among the highest, state data shows.
But at least part of that finding could be the result of better diagnoses of certain kinds of cancer due to higher health insurance rates in counties like Hunterdon, Morris, and Somerset. While it had a high incidence rate, Hunterdon's age-adjusted cancer mortality rate was lowest in the state, at 1.5 deaths per 1,000 people, again, at least partly due to residents having access to good healthcare. That compares with the highest mortality rate -- 2.1 per 1,000 -- in the southern counties of Cape May, Salem, and Cumberland."

https://www.njspotlight.com/stories/12/0726/1344/

And yes, in the Toms River cancer cluster, water is one of the prominent assumptions.

strangerdanger ✉
May '19

Crud, how and where do you test fir radon in water?

StrangerDanger ✉
May '19

If i was looking for a local cause, I would start at the incinerator in Oxford that burned 550 tons of garbage a day.

Denis ✉
May '19

@drew. “It’s bad in long valley. They used to do lots of chemical testing around here.”.


Where is there chemical testing in long valley?

not sack
May '19

As I have stated in the past, I very strongly recommend anyone who wants to have a better understanding of cancer to take the time and read the the book "The Emperor of All Maladies: Cancer"

The book is incredibly informative as a biography of the disease. It puts into perspective the impact it has had on the human race as well as what lies ahead. The book will educate the reader about what we will all face in our lifetime and perhaps curb the comments like some of the misinformed generalizations made in the above posts.

It does get technical and a bit depressing at times but I consider it an absolute must read. If reading is not your bag try it as an audio version. It is also an excellent Ken Burns documentary series as well.

I can't state it strongly enough, be informed- read this book!

https://www.amazon.com/Emperor-All-Maladies-Biography-Cancer-ebook/dp/B003UYUP58

Greg ✉
May '19

https://nj1015.com/polluted-new-jersey-the-most-toxic-sites-in-your-neighborhood/ There you go buddy. I don’t listen to old timers I read as maybe you should

Drew ✉
May '19

Ok not trying to argue if you go into Chester and go to Bernie’s the bar across the street they have been doing an environmental clean up for the past 7 years. Can’t be good

Drew ✉
May '19

Kepa, you should keep that under your hat, if the Mosquito Commission gets wind of it they will be out there spraying for sure.

Denis ✉
May '19