Southwest Pennsylvania Kids Breathe Carcinogenic Coke Oven Emissions

"Kids breathe about four times as much air as an adults, so they have proportionately more of these chemicals in their bodies."

"PITTSBURGH—Six-year-old Madelina DeLuca was diagnosed with leukemia when she was just 23 months old.

"She had some bruising and we couldn't figure out where it came from," Madelina's mom, Kristin DeLuca, told EHN.

Madelina's doctors did a series of tests, but initially couldn't figure out what the cause was. Eventually the bruising got worse and Madelina developed stomach pain. After several months of uncertainty, they got unusual blood test results, and in November of 2014, Madelina had her first bone marrow biopsy."

Kristina Marusic reports for Environmental Health News April 22, 2019.

 

Source: EHN, 04/22/2019