WWII Nuclear Waste Linked to Elevated Cancer Risk Near Missouri Creek

A series of studies led by researchers from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health have confirmed that children who lived near Coldwater Creek, a Missouri tributary polluted with radioactive waste from the Manhattan Project during the 1940s to 1960s, face a significantly elevated lifetime risk of cancer. Data from over 4,200 participants showed that those living within one kilometer of the creek had an 85 percent higher chance of developing cancers such as leukemia, thyroid, and breast cancer compared to those living farther away, with cancer risk increasing steadily the closer residents lived to the creek. The radioactive contamination originated from uranium processing for the atomic bomb, with waste stored in open drums near the creek, a practice only publicly acknowledged in the late 1980s. These findings challenge earlier studies that found no cancer risk due to focusing on current residents rather than those exposed as children. The research has spurred legislative action, including provisions in recent bills to provide compensation to affected individuals and families, recognizing the health impacts of lower-dose radiation exposure from nuclear weapons production. Experts stress that these results underscore the need for careful management of nuclear waste amid global discussions on expanding nuclear power and weapons development.