Camp Lejeune Dangers from the Contaminated Water Supply - Camp Lejeune has been called the worst public drinking water contamination in our nation’s history. More than a million Marine Corp members, their families, and employees of Camp Lejeune, NC, who lived and worked at the Camp between 1953 and 1987 drank contaminated water. Later, it was found that many of those people had a much higher rate of Camp Lejeune cancers from their toxic chemical exposure. A probe in the 1980s resulted in the camp being listed as a Superfund site in 1989.

Toxic waste dumps received national attention in the 1970s when the public learned of the potential risks to human health by contaminated water. As a result, Congress established the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) in 1980, however, the Act is generally referred to as Superfund. When a site receives Superfund designation, the EPA can clean up the contamination or force the responsible parties to do so. The goal of Superfund is to protect human health and the environment.   

During approximately thirty-plus years, the Marine Corp dumped oil and industrial wastewater in storm drains, and potentially radioactive materials were buried. Even worse, a nearby drycleaning store was dumping chemicals into drains. Those chemicals primarily included tetrachloroethylene (PCE) and trichloroethylene (TCE). Also found were vinyl chloride and benzene. TCE is a solvent most often used to clean metal parts. PCE is used for metal degreasing and dry cleaning.

Both TCE and PCE degrade in groundwater as time passes, becoming vinyl chloride. Benzene is used to make synthetic fibers, nylon, resins, and plastics. The maximum level of TCE detected in Camp Lejeune drinking water was 1,400 ug/L in May 1982. The EPA limit for TCE in drinking water is 5 ug/L. There were multiple sources of water contamination including waste disposal sites and leaking underground storage tanks. The most highly Camp Lejeune contaminated water supply wells were shut down as of February 1985.

While the Marine Corps maintained that the chemicals found in Camp Lejeune’s drinking water were not regulated, this is only partially true. The Dept. of Navy Bureau of Medicine and Surgery regulations were in force at the base, barring toxic substances in water. Since the dangers of organic solvents were known, it is believed that the Corps was aware of the dangers as early as 1974. Once tighter environmental regulations regarding drinking water were instituted, military chemists began testing Camp Lejeune’s drinking water in October 1980 yet even after the results were known, nothing was done to clean up the water—or to warn those on the base about the potential toxicity of the water.  

It wasn’t until 1982 that Grainger Laboratories was hired to test the Camp Lejeune contaminated water supply. The very first results shocked the chemists because the readings for organic cleaning solvents were so high, yet nothing was done by base officials. Grainger’s warnings regarding Camp Lejeune toxic chemical exposure continued for the next two years, but after being repeatedly ignored, a Grainger chemist tipped off NC officials that the Corps was holding back reports detailing the water contamination. The contamination was finally made public in late 1984; by 1985 10 wells in the area were closed due to contamination.  

What Are the Camp Lejeune Injuries Received from the Toxic Water? The primary diseases linked to the Camp Lejeune contaminated water supply include:

• Breast Cancer
• Bladder Cancer
• Renal Toxicity
• Parkinson’s Disease
• Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma
• Neurobehavioral Effects
• Lung Cancer
• Multiple Myeloma
• Myelodysplastic Syndrome
• Scleroderma
• Esophageal Cancer
• Miscarriage
• Kidney Cancer
• Leukemia
• Female Infertility
• Hepatic steatosis
• Liver Cancer

The chemicals believed to have led to these diseases include PCE, TCE, vinyl chloride, and benzene. TCE is airborne, waterborne, or found in the soil. While generally used as a cleaner or degreaser, TCE is also used as a start to compound or build other chemicals. PCE is used in dry cleaning plants and machine cleaning and is a colorless liquid. Benzene is colorless, with a sweet aroma, used to manufacture detergents, pesticides, and certain rubber materials. Benzene does not fully dissolve in water. Vinyl chloride is formed from the breakdown of other chemicals, including PCE and TCE, and is often used to manufacture plastics and packing materials.

How Do the Camp Lejeune Cancers and Injuries Differ from One Another (diagnosis, prognosis, treatment) - Camp Lejeune bladder cancer is one of the most common types of cancers resulting from the contaminated water at the Camp. In addition to exposure to environmental toxins, age and gender are other risk factors for bladder cancer. There is no cure for bladder cancer, although early detection, along with chemotherapy and radiation can lead to a better prognosis.

Camp Lejeune breast cancer has also been definitively linked to the toxic water at the Camp. Women who were exposed to the contaminated water at Camp Lejeune have a much higher risk of developing breast cancer than those who were not exposed to the toxins. The contaminants in the water can disrupt and damage DNA which can then lead to the development of breast cancer. Early detection is crucial for successful breast cancer treatment and can include chemotherapy, radiation, and immunotherapy treatments as well as the surgical removal of the breasts.

Kidney and liver cancers are also commonly seen among those exposed to the Camp Lejeune contaminated water supply. Signs of kidney cancer include chronic back pain, loss of appetite, blood in the urine, extreme fatigue, and fever. Ultrasounds, CT scans, and MRIs may be done, along with a biopsy to test the affected areas. Treatment for kidney cancer can include removal of the affected kidney, radiation, cryoablation, and immunotherapy. The prognosis for kidney cancer is generally five years or less.  

Liver cancer has similar symptoms as kidney cancer, along with nausea and vomiting, upper abdomen pain and swelling, jaundice, and white, chalky stool. Treatment can include a liver transplant, removal of the tumor, chemotherapy, or heating or freezing the cancer cells. The prognosis following a diagnosis of liver cancer will depend on the stage but is generally not positive.

Camp Lejeune adult leukemia can include acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL), acute myelogenous leukemia (AML), chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), and chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML). Leukemia is a broad term for cancers of the blood cells. The type of leukemia will depend on the type of blood cell that becomes cancerous, and whether it grows quickly or slowly. Symptoms of leukemia include body temperature changes, swollen lymph nodes, unexplained weight loss, chronic infections, chronic fatigue, and unusual bruising.  Leukemia generally requires targeted chemotherapy, radiation, bone marrow transplants, cell engineering, and immunotherapy.

Other types of Camp Lejeune cancers include cervical cancer, esophageal cancer (one of the deadliest types of cancer, with only a five-year survival rate of 20 percent), and lung cancer. All of these cancers can be extremely serious, although less so if caught very early. Unfortunately, there are few overt symptoms of Camp Lejeune cervical cancer, although irregular bleeding and pelvic pain may be experienced.

The prognosis for cervical cancer will depend on the stage the cancer is at when diagnosed. Lung cancer symptoms can include a persistent cough, chest pain, shortness of breath, extreme fatigue, coughing up blood, and weight loss with no known cause. The five-year survival rate for Camp Lejeune lung cancer is 56 percent if detected while the disease is still within the lungs.

Camp Lejeune Parkinson’s disease as well as other diseases like ALS, can result in those exposed to toxins in drinking water. Tremors, shaking, lack of control of the feet and facial muscles, poor posture and balance, and loss of the ability to speak and write are some of the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease which is diagnosed via physical and neurological exams. Treatment can include a variety of medications and surgical interventions.

Camp Lejeune renal toxicity is also common among those exposed to toxic water at the Camp. Renal toxicity is damage to the kidneys that can lead to kidney failure. Camp Lejeune scleroderma is a condition that results in hardening and thickening of the skin and can also affect tissues and organs inside the body. Camp Lejeune hepatic steatosis, also known as fatty liver disease, has been seen in many of those exposed to the toxic water at the Camp, as has infertility among women. Exposure to the chemicals known to be in the water at Camp Lejeune has been linked to infertility in women as well as to miscarriages.

Camp Lejeune multiple myeloma is a type of cancer that forms in the plasma cells, accumulates in the bone marrow, and limits the growth of blood cells. Symptoms of multiple myeloma include spinal or chest pain, nausea and constipation, loss of appetite, cognitive confusion, extreme fatigue, chronic infections, excessive thirst, and leg weakness or numbness. Chemotherapy, immunotherapy, a bone marrow transplant, radiation, and corticosteroids are all treatments for multiple myeloma.

Camp Lejeune non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma is a cancer of the lymphatic system that causes white blood cells to grow abnormally, forming tumors. Symptoms of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma include difficulty breathing, a chronic cough, chest pain, swelling or pain in the abdomen, enlarged lymph nodes, chronic and persistent fatigue, unexplained weight loss, night sweats, and fever. A bone marrow test, spinal tap, CT, MRI scan, blood and urine tests, and a physical exam can all be used to diagnose non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Treatments include targeted drug therapy, radiation, and chemotherapy, as well as a bone marrow transplant.