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A concerned parent and Fraser's father were given heartbreaking news in 2018 when their young son their child was confirmed to have a rare type of blood cancer.

Two years of demanding therapies followed, comprising cancer medications, radiation therapy, and immunotherapy before a stem cell transplant. The young boy, then aged three, made a extraordinary turnaround from the operation, with doctors declaring the illness in remission.

During this period that the mother, in her mid-thirties, began looking for explanations. She could not stop thinking about comments made by medical professionals at the time of her Fraser's condition. “We lose sleep wondering how Fraser got his illness,” a consultant had shared with her.

“It keeps us up at night wondering how Fraser got his disease,” a specialist had informed her.

Historical Context

The negligent management of millions of tonnes of contaminated waste after the closure of a major industrial facility in Corby in 1979 had “long been recognized,” said Alison. A 2009 civil case connected the improper remediation efforts of the site to a cluster of birth defects in town residents during the previous decades.

Over time, the concerned mother started to connect the case to her own. “[The disease] is not inherited,” she said. “What could cause this? … It has to be down to the area. So many children [with] cancer.

“Everybody in this town knows somebody who’s got a child [with] the disease. That's unusual.”

Grassroots Movement

Gaffney and Hinde started to reach out to more parents in Corby with similar stories – including some of Alison's past schoolmates at their former educational institution – and the collective began assembling detailed records on those involved. They now spearhead a initiative supporting about 130 families with cases of youth disease dating back to 1988.

The group has been calling on the town council to investigate any relationships between instances of youth disease in the town and the decommissioning of the industrial site. Soon, public health officials are set to publish their evaluation of whether the town has had a disproportionate number of instances of childhood cancer for its inhabitants of the local community.

“All we want is to attempt to safeguard future people so they do not have to endure the suffering that we've experienced,” said Gaffney.

Historical Context

The decision in the 2009 civil claim recognized that, between a fourteen-year period, enormous amounts of contaminated materials from the steel plant were moved “typically” from the south of Corby to Deene Quarry in the northern section – with “substantial volumes” of hazardous materials carried and dropped on local thoroughfares and “considerable amounts” of airborne particles created by the reclamation.

However, it also referenced reports from the Environment Agency in 1997 that found accumulations of toxic substances that had been abandoned at Deene Quarry were later taken away in “significant amounts”.

Expanding Concerns

Gaffney maintains contaminated materials was not exclusively placed at the primary location but in other parts of the town. Lately, she welcomed a “major step forward” after municipal government said it would analyze land that could be tainted and investigate where toxic waste was disposed of.

Alison said council staff acknowledged in the discussion that they lacked information where the sites of toxic materials could be. “They said: ‘We're uncertain where these sites are. We have no documentation, we have nothing on it.’”

Public Endorsement

The official statement was also welcomed by Tonia Shalgosky, a educational worker at a elementary institution, whose nine-year-old daughter, Bella, was diagnosed with leukaemia in recent months.

“I had to shave my nine-year-old daughter's hair because her locks was coming out from the medications she had to take to eliminate her disease. Consequently it’s in everyone's benefit, it’s in Bella’s interest [for the council] to disclose that knowledge,” she explained.

“Countless people in the town that have been confirmed to have pediatric illness and It seems it’s cannot be dismissed – it requires investigation. This isn't typical.”

Personal Stories

A community member, aged thirty-one, who has a professional career and now has moved away, said parents earned “full transparency and clarity” from the local authority.

The woman's 11-year-old sister, her sister, died on 24 June 2017 after being diagnosed with a uncommon malignancy at the age of nine. Eve, who fundraised for cancer charities, was “one of the most lovable, humorous and compassionate” individuals, she recalled.

Her family member recalls the effect of the cessation of the manufacturing site on the town, she said. “She mentioned you could not position your fingers in ahead of you because [of] the particulate matter.”

“This has been going on since around about early childhood. It's too long and it is irresponsibility toward the community members.”

Previous Involvement

Lyons’s cousin, Maggie Mahon, was part of multiple households connected to the court proceeding against the former government after her baby was diagnosed with a congenital issue. Her partner, her partner, was a member of the vehicle operators participating in removing waste from the manufacturing facility. Their experience was depicted in a media production, and showed Maggie cleaning the debris from her spouse's clothing.

Gaffney said the organization has been approached by individuals with information who were involved in the dumping of materials in the area.