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Video length: 15 min
Pediatric cancers: “We are poisoning our population”, says the vice-president of Médecins du monde
The doctor Jean-François Corty co-directed “Contrepoisons, un combat citoyen”, which highlights the fight of the families of 25 children who have had cancer in five years in the same geographical area.
In Sainte-Pazanne (Loire-Atlantique), a town of less than 7,000 inhabitants, 25 pediatric cancers were recorded between 2015 and 2020. This is a cluster, a “abnormal number of cases in a given territory”, explains Jean-François Corty, vice-president of Médecins du monde, author of Counterpoisons, a citizen fight, guest of 11/13 info, Thursday May 9. He co-directed a documentary to trace the struggles of families trying to understand why some children get sick. “90% of these cancers are probably linked to environmental toxicants”he adds.
Public health issues opposed to the economy
“From our point of view, there are shortcomings in public health in France on this issue. We do not have the epidemiological tools to be on standby”, believes Jean-François Corty. However, the doctor assures that it is possible to do it. “There is a tension between public health issues and probably economic issues, because it impacts phytosanitary issues, everything that relates to intensive agriculture”develops the vice-president of Médecins du monde. “We are poisoning our population, particularly through different molecules, pesticides or otherwise”concludes Jean-François Corty.
