Health News
- U Of L Researchers Developing A Breath Test For Lung Cancer
Lung cancer victims often don't notice any symptoms before it's too late, and Kentucky suffers from the highest rate of the disease ? 3,500 deaths per year. Smoking, the leading cause of lung cancer, is the nation's highest among Kentucky...
- Uk, With Magnet Of National Cancer Institute Designation, Attracts 4 Researchers And Their $17 Million In Funding From U Of L
"A month after the University of Kentucky announced it is home to the state?s first National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center, an internationally recognized research team studying the role metabolism plays in cancer is leaving the University...
- Study Suggesting That Coal Is A Cause Of Health Problems In E. Ky. Is Disputed By Industry And Politicians, Defended By Researcher
By Molly Burchett Kentucky Health News A heated debate centers on new research showing that residents in Floyd County, where coal is stripped from the tops of mountains and ridges, report more health problems than those in two nearby communities without...
- Study Indicates Risk Of Fatal Birth Defects Is Higher In Counties With Mountaintop-removal Coal Mining
"Children born in counties home to mountaintop coal mines had a 26 percent higher risk of suffering" a fatal birth defect "compared to ones born in non-mining regions," according to a new study, Dan Vergano of USA Today reports. The study, led by health...
- Kentucky Continues To Lead Nation In Cancer Death Rate
Though cancer deaths rates are falling nationwide, Kentucky continues to rank worst in the country for its number of cancer deaths, The Courier-Journal's Laura Ungar has determined. (C-J graphic shows rates for the nation, Kentucky and Indiana, the...
Health News
Black lung affects Kentucky surface miners more than those in other states, CDC study finds and Courier-Journal reports
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| Photo by Getty Images. |
Nearly 4 percent of surface coal miners who work in Central Appalachia who were tested for a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have black lung disease, compared to 2 percent of all U.S. surface miners and 3.2 percent of underground coal miners.
Though the study didn't test Kentucky separately from the 14 other states assessed, Laura Ungar of The Courier-Journal in Louisville asked about it and found that "13 of 230 Kentucky surface miners tested ? or 5.7 percent ? had black lung," she reports, quoting Cara Halldin, a CDC epidemic intelligence service officer, as calling that number " a disproportionate burden."
It's not clear why the incidence is higher in Central Appalachia than other parts of the country, but Halldin suspects it has to do with "more years spent mining, area geology or the safety culture at mines," Ungar reports. One study showed miners who work in Central Appalachia typically work 28 years in the mines while non-Appalachian miners work average 20 years.
Black-lung disease, or coal workers' pneumoconiosis, is the result of miners repeatedly inhaling the dust that comes from extracting coal. That dust occurs whether the miner is under- or above-ground. "Coal mining is really, really dusty. Don't matter what you do, you're in the dust," said John Bud Ritchie, a retired surface miner who has black lung disease. "It's real rough. You can't hardly keep the dust down on hot days."
The federal exposure limit for "respirable dust" in underground and surface mines is 2 milligrams of coal dust per cubic meter of air. That limit was set in 1969, along with a law that set up "a surveillance system for assessing prevalence of black lung among underground coal miners," Ungar reports. "But the requirement for surveillance doesn't extend to surface miners." Haldin said, "Industry should recognize this is a problem and their workers are at risk and bring down the levels." (Read more)
Though the study didn't test Kentucky separately from the 14 other states assessed, Laura Ungar of The Courier-Journal in Louisville asked about it and found that "13 of 230 Kentucky surface miners tested ? or 5.7 percent ? had black lung," she reports, quoting Cara Halldin, a CDC epidemic intelligence service officer, as calling that number " a disproportionate burden."
It's not clear why the incidence is higher in Central Appalachia than other parts of the country, but Halldin suspects it has to do with "more years spent mining, area geology or the safety culture at mines," Ungar reports. One study showed miners who work in Central Appalachia typically work 28 years in the mines while non-Appalachian miners work average 20 years.
Black-lung disease, or coal workers' pneumoconiosis, is the result of miners repeatedly inhaling the dust that comes from extracting coal. That dust occurs whether the miner is under- or above-ground. "Coal mining is really, really dusty. Don't matter what you do, you're in the dust," said John Bud Ritchie, a retired surface miner who has black lung disease. "It's real rough. You can't hardly keep the dust down on hot days."
The federal exposure limit for "respirable dust" in underground and surface mines is 2 milligrams of coal dust per cubic meter of air. That limit was set in 1969, along with a law that set up "a surveillance system for assessing prevalence of black lung among underground coal miners," Ungar reports. "But the requirement for surveillance doesn't extend to surface miners." Haldin said, "Industry should recognize this is a problem and their workers are at risk and bring down the levels." (Read more)
- U Of L Researchers Developing A Breath Test For Lung Cancer
Lung cancer victims often don't notice any symptoms before it's too late, and Kentucky suffers from the highest rate of the disease ? 3,500 deaths per year. Smoking, the leading cause of lung cancer, is the nation's highest among Kentucky...
- Uk, With Magnet Of National Cancer Institute Designation, Attracts 4 Researchers And Their $17 Million In Funding From U Of L
"A month after the University of Kentucky announced it is home to the state?s first National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center, an internationally recognized research team studying the role metabolism plays in cancer is leaving the University...
- Study Suggesting That Coal Is A Cause Of Health Problems In E. Ky. Is Disputed By Industry And Politicians, Defended By Researcher
By Molly Burchett Kentucky Health News A heated debate centers on new research showing that residents in Floyd County, where coal is stripped from the tops of mountains and ridges, report more health problems than those in two nearby communities without...
- Study Indicates Risk Of Fatal Birth Defects Is Higher In Counties With Mountaintop-removal Coal Mining
"Children born in counties home to mountaintop coal mines had a 26 percent higher risk of suffering" a fatal birth defect "compared to ones born in non-mining regions," according to a new study, Dan Vergano of USA Today reports. The study, led by health...
- Kentucky Continues To Lead Nation In Cancer Death Rate
Though cancer deaths rates are falling nationwide, Kentucky continues to rank worst in the country for its number of cancer deaths, The Courier-Journal's Laura Ungar has determined. (C-J graphic shows rates for the nation, Kentucky and Indiana, the...