Yorkshire town residents have 'shocking' high levels of 'forever chemicals' linked to cancer

Worryingly high levels of ‘forever chemicals’ linked to cancer and other serious illnesses have been found in residents of a Yorkshire town following blood testing. PFAS are a group of millions of chemicals often described as ‘forever chemicals’ because they take an extremely long time to break down in the environment. PFAS is short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances.

Some of these chemicals are known and suspected carcinogens; substances capable of causing cancer by damaging cell DNA or inducing mutations. For decades, Angus Fire, the main employer in Bentham, North Yorkshire, manufactured and tested PFAS firefighting foam at its factory. Previous investigations into testing of groundwater on the Angus Fire site had revealed the highest known concentrations of PFAS ever recorded in the UK.

ITV News, makers of a new documentary airing this weekend, offered residents for the first time, a test to discover the levels of PFAS in their blood. Everyone who took part lives within a kilometre of the factory or is a former or current worker at Angus Fire - and the results were described by experts as “shocking”. In the UK, there are no official guidelines for safe levels of PFAS in blood so the guidance provided to residents in Bentham comes from NASEM (National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine), the scientific body advising the US government.

NASEM states if the PFAS level in blood is between 2 nanograms per millilitre (ng/ml) or 20 ng/ml, then there is a potential for adverse health effects. If the PFAS level in the blood is above 20 ng/ml, then experts state there is an increased risk of adverse effects and clinicians should consider more frequent, targeted health screenings. Nine of the 39 people tested had PFAS levels above 20 ng/ml, putting them in the highest risk category.

One former worker at Angus Fire recorded a blood PFAS level of 405 ng/ml. This is more than 200 times higher than the lower risk threshold. Dr David Megson, an expert in environmental forensics at Manchester Metropolitan University, analysed the blood results for the programme, comparing the levels in Bentham with the general population in America.

He said: “I was absolutely shocked when we started to run this data. Nearly everybody we tested was above average and two thirds of them were in the top 5%. A third of them were higher than anything we’d ever expect to see in the background population.

“I’ve done a few contamination studies in my time as a scientist and I think that this one is the one that stands out for just such a high proportion of people having elevated exposure of PFAS. It was quite staggering.”

In response to the PFAS blood test results in Bentham, an Angus Fire spokesperson said that there was “no accepted way of interpreting blood tests for Pfas internationally and there is limited agreement on the relationship between Pfas exposure, blood levels and health effects”.

They said it was “unfounded to classify [the] blood data as ‘unusually high’ in the UK context”.

They added that the blood test group in Bentham was “extremely small” and said: “While we appreciate that these findings may cause concern, having raised Pfas levels in blood is neither an indicator of health, nor of the way in which Pfas has been absorbed.” Some residents with cancer and other conditions known to be associated with PFAS exposure question whether their poor health could be linked to PFAS contamination in the town. Others worry about the future impact on their children and families.

Rachel Harrison grew up in Bentham and has raised her two young children there but never worked for Angus Fire. She tells the programme she is now moving out of the town and one of the factors is the contamination. Her blood test revealed her level is 2 ng/ml but her children were significantly higher.

Her three-year-old daughter’s is 10 ng/ml, her one-year-old son’s is 13 ng/ml. Upon opening her test results she told the programme-makers: “Why am I so low if theirs are so high? I’m a bit shocked.

You have to try and stay level about it and not be living in fear that my children might be affected later in life but you’re just desperately hoping that they’re not going to be ill from it or that they’re not going to develop a cancer related to this.

“We are actually planning to move out of Benham. There’s a lot of reasons why. If I have the opportunity to move my children away from something that could cause them harm, you’re going to do that.”

Stephen Illston, 34, took part in the blood testing and found out he has a PFAS level of 55 ng/ml. He’s had trouble conceiving children and said his infertility issues led to poor mental health. PFAS has been associated with reproductive health problems among men, including lower sperm count.

Stephen said finding out he has elevated PFAS in his blood is “an answer that I’ve been searching for.”

“It’s good to hear it’s not me, maybe it’s the PFAS that’s caused it,” he said. Stephen has lived in Bentham for his entire life. Until recently he worked for a company that shared the Angus Fire site.

In response to the documentary, Angus Fire said it has always followed guidelines as set out by the UK regulatory and health authorities, adding it has always had an open dialogue with the community and its representatives. The company added that while it appreciates the findings may cause concern, having raised PFAS levels in blood is neither an indicator of health, nor of the way in which PFAS has been absorbed. Angus Fire said that since 2024, it has carried out significant investigative, containment, characterisation and remediation work, including a stormwater treatment system that will reduce PFAS in rainwater that runs off the site.

It added: "

Angus Fire has always followed guidelines as set out by the UK regulatory and health authorities. Our own understanding of these chemicals evolved at the same rate as those of the regulators.” In America, greater awareness of the PFAS has been driven by legal action.

Lawyer Robert Bilott, whose story was made into the Hollywood film ‘Dark Waters’ raised the alarm on PFAS almost three decades ago. He says authorities worldwide have been too slow to recognise the health impacts of PFAS. Across the UK, concern is growing over the threat posed by forever chemicals.

There are thought to be up to 10,000 PFAS contaminated hotspots across the country, many of them linked to firefighting foam. The Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs said: “The persistent nature of ‘forever chemicals’ poses a long-term challenge for the nation’s ecosystems and health.

“Through our PFAS Plan, we are acting decisively to better understand and tackle the sources of PFAS and how they spread, while supporting the transition to safer alternatives. We will work in partnership with businesses, regulators and local communities to reduce the public’s exposure to PFAS.” ” * In Our Blood: The Forever Chemicals Scandal is on ITV1 this Sunday (March 22) at 10.15pm. Like this story?