A multidisciplinary investigation of a polycythemia vera cancer cluster of unknown origin

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2010 Mar;7(3):1139-52. doi: 10.3390/ijerph7031139. Epub 2010 Mar 17.

Abstract

Cancer cluster investigations rarely receive significant public health resource allocations due to numerous inherent challenges and the limited success of past efforts. In 2008, a cluster of polycythemia vera, a rare blood cancer with unknown etiology, was identified in northeast Pennsylvania. A multidisciplinary group of federal and state agencies, academic institutions, and local healthcare providers subsequently developed a multifaceted research portfolio designed to better understand the cause of the cluster. This research agenda represents a unique and important opportunity to demonstrate that cancer cluster investigations can produce desirable public health and scientific outcomes when necessary resources are available.

Keywords: Pennsylvania; cancer cluster; environmental exposure; polycythemia vera.

MeSH terms

  • Cluster Analysis
  • Environmental Exposure
  • Hematologic Neoplasms / epidemiology*
  • Humans
  • Pennsylvania / epidemiology
  • Polycythemia Vera / epidemiology*