Local and county officials are cautioning Town of Tonawanda residents not to panic over Thursday's report by the state Department of Health that found cancer rates about 10 percent higher than expected in neighborhoods near the Linde/Praxair site.

"The thing people need to understand is while they are showing an increased incidence in the rate of cancer there, it doesn't necessarily mean there's a causation," said Dr. Anthony J. Billittier IV, Erie County health commissioner.

"We really need to see what the cause of this is before we say it's a radiation issue or a chemical issue or something else," Billittier said.

The former Linde Air Products site is where the federal government dumped radioactive waste during the Manhattan Project in World War II.

State Health Department officials who conducted the "cancer mapping project" in the surrounding 14150 and 14217 ZIP code sectors say the nearly 10 percent increase in overall instances in cancer in both sexes there between 1994 and 1998 is "not likely due to chance."

For cancers that have been linked to radiation exposure, some types, such as colorectal cancer in men and colorectal, breast and thyroid cancer in women, were greater than expected while other types were similar to Health Department cancer projections, health officials said.

Leukemia and lung cancer, also commonly associated with radiation exposure, were in line with what was expected, the study concluded. This study did not, however, study cause-and-effect relationships for the increased number of cancer cases, state health officials warned.

Nevertheless, Don Finch, a 20-year employee at the Linde site who petitioned the state to study potential health hazards in the area, says he's certain the radioactive remnants are to blame and hopes Thursday's announcement is a "wake-up" call for nearby residents.

"I'm hoping now people will become alert. The next move, if people become awakened, is to have a meeting somewhere to get together and have an open discussion meeting," Finch said. "I think we've got to take a little sharper look at things here."

That's just what the state Health Department says it will be doing over the next year.

Health officials are now expected to conduct a follow-up study for a smaller area around the Linde site. That study will also identify cancer rates over a longer time period, likely 10 years.

Billittier, County Legislator Charles M. Swanick, D-Kenmore, and Tonawanda Town Supervisor Ronald H. Moline, a Republican, hope additional state studies will help pinpoint the reasons for the cancer.

"Obviously we're interested and concerned with health-related matters, and obviously we want to see studies done thoroughly so the results have validity," Moline said. "I think we have to count on the public officials to come up with the facts and the conclusions."

"It's a common belief that radioactive material close to any human beings can cause significant health problems, that's a given," Swanick said. "Right now, they're showing a 10 percent higher rate, but there is no conclusive cause. We've got to keep in mind there may be another culprit.

"What's important for the public and for all of us to find out is what is causing these high cancer rates, and people need to participate in this next in-depth study. This is very important," he said.

The county and town are teaming up to mail informational packets about the Health Department findings to all residents in the study area. Swanick expects residents to receive the mailings sometime in the next week.

e-mail: tpignataro@buffnews.com

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