June 15th, 2007

A number of employees working at a county office building have raised concerns over the potential link between cancer levels in staff and possible asbestos contamination in the air. Asbestos is a substance that can cause a form of cancer known as mesothelioma through exposure to its airborne dust and fibers at high levels or over long periods.

The matter has now been brought up with the Canton City Health Commissioner Robert Pattison. However, Stark County Health Commissioner William J. Franks has denied that there is any call for alarm over the concerns that have been voiced by staff members working at the Stark County Office Building.

In his letter to Pattison Franks wrote: “It has been brought to my attention that some people have observed multiple cases of cancer in employees of the office building. It has also been described to me that there is asbestos in the building that may get into the indoor air of the building.”

The Health Department will be taking the matter seriously, although Pattison states that it is too early to develop any links as yet. He stated: “We get requests to investigate health concerns all the time and we do quite a bit of indoor air investigations. There could be a difference here. If you are talking about a clustering of disease, that’s different from an indoor air issue. We really have to define what we’re talking about. It might not be an issue with the building at all.”