Ford cancers: company statement

12:00pm Friday 23rd February 2007

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FORD Southampton communicated to employees that an investigation into six cases of oesophageal cancer among paint shop employees found that no firm link could be made between the disease and their workplace.

This conclusion was independently endorsed by Southampton-based Professor David Coggon, occupational medicine specialist at the Medical Research Council.

Ford's medical services director oversaw this tightly defined and thorough investigation into oesophageal cancer cases at the plant between 1994 and 2005. This was carried out because six instances of the cancer recorded in company pensions records was unusually high. One or two cases would be expected in this timeframe.

Ford's investigation was in four parts: review of all available records for the six cases; pension records check for the defined period; reference to published research on chemical exposure within paint shops; and inclusion of 2003 data on oesophageal cancer among Ford North America employees (which confirmed no firm relationship for its defined group between the disease and working in a paint shop).

Based on this 18-month process, Ford's medical services department and Prof Coggon concluded that an oesophageal cancer cluster had occurred at Southampton plant between 1994 and 2005.

A cluster of disease is an unusually high number of cases in a defined population over a period of time during which fewer than one or two cases would be expected. The evidence was that this oesophageal cancer cluster occurred by chance.

Since our medical services director and Southampton plant manager reported back to employees that no firm link could be made between the disease and their workplace, a company doctor has been available to any employee requesting a private appointment.

We remain available to meet families of the late employees included in the investigation.

Ford is prioritising those affected by the investigation's defined cases for this support.

The Daily Echo coverage of families of employees whose bereavements are not connected with this rigorous scientific investigation is unlikely to help their situations. With cancer in its many forms being a common disease in Britain, a workplace the size of the Southampton plant (employing 1,300-plus people) is inevitably affected.

This does not translate into any proven relationship between the disease and place of work. The "oesophageal expert" approached by the newspaper for comment also confirmed "no known link between the disease and working with industrial paints" (Echo, Feb 6 and 9).