You are the chief epidemiologist at a local county health
department. One day, you receive a phone call from Mrs. Hudson, a resident of
the northern part of a nearby town with a population of 25,000. She believes
there is a cancer cluster in her community. Here’s why:
Mrs. Hudson’s sister, who lives less than a mile away, was
recently diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
A neighbor of Mrs. Hudson’s sister recently died of
leukemia.
Mrs. Hudson knows at least 10 other cases of cancer in the
community, including a child afflicted with a brain tumor, several cases of
prostate cancer, a woman with cervical cancer, and a man with malignant
melanoma.
Mrs. Hudson suspects that the cause may be a pesticide
manufacturing plant that has been operating on the outskirts of the city for
the past year.
Based on the above information, compose a letter to allay
Mrs. Hudson’s fears.
