{"id":16913,"date":"2026-01-08T12:23:16","date_gmt":"2026-01-08T17:23:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/news\/?page_id=16913"},"modified":"2026-01-08T12:23:16","modified_gmt":"2026-01-08T17:23:16","slug":"virginia-cancer-registry-releases-cancer-cluster-investigation-report","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/news\/public-relations-contacts\/2026-regional-news-releases\/virginia-cancer-registry-releases-cancer-cluster-investigation-report\/","title":{"rendered":"Virginia Cancer Registry Releases Cancer Cluster Investigation Report"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>January 7, 2026<br \/>\n<strong>Media Contact:<\/strong> Linda Scarborough, linda.scarborough@vdh.virginia.gov<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Virginia Cancer Registry Releases Cancer Cluster Investigation Report <\/strong><\/p>\n<p>GATE CITY, Va. \u2013 Virginia Department of Health\u2019s Virginia Cancer Registry (VCR) has released its Scott County <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/virginia-cancer-registry\/cancer-clusters\/\">pediatric cancer investigation report<\/a>. The report indicates that cancer rates did not meet the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) definition of a cluster, based on the cases included in the 2014-2023 analysis.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe results of the current investigation are being shared, but our work will not stop here,\u201d said LENOWISCO Health District Director Reisa Sloce. \u201cWe will continue to provide the Virginia Cancer Registry with any additional pediatric cancer information we receive to ensure the most recent cases are reviewed as that data becomes more complete.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/cancer-environment\/about\/index.html\">CDC<\/a> and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cancer.gov\/publications\/dictionaries\/cancer-terms\/def\/cancer-cluster\">National Cancer Institute<\/a> (NCI) define a cancer cluster as a greater-than-expected number of same or related cancer cases that occurs within a group of people in a defined geographic area over a specific period of time.<\/p>\n<p>LENOWISCO received 24 survey responses from people in Scott, Lee, and Wise counties, with half the reports from Scott County. Since Scott County reported half the cases, versus the other half of cases reported in two separate localities, the investigation focused on Scott County. Five survey responses met the case definition, and three more cases were identified from current registry data, for a total of eight cases included in the 2014\u20132023 analysis.<\/p>\n<p>Data for 2024 and 2025 were not included in the investigation, as cancer data takes time to be finalized. The information must be verified, reviewed, analyzed and exchanged with other state registries. The two-year lag is universal across other states. The most recent data will be reviewed once this process is completed.<\/p>\n<p>VCR staff reviewed each patient\u2019s medical reports in the registry to confirm the correct type of cancer, where the cancer started within the patient, and when it was diagnosed. This review included doctors\u2019 notes and test results to ensure accuracy.<\/p>\n<p>Environmental factors such as radon, drinking water and industrial site concerns were also reviewed to identify common environmental exposures. No link to environmental factors were identified.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLENOWISCO Health District remains committed to supporting Scott County and its residents,\u201d said Sloce. \u201cWe are truly invested in the health and wellness of our community and strive to connect you with available resources and address health related concerns.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The full report is available at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/virginia-cancer-registry\/cancer-clusters\/\">www.vdh.virginia.gov\/virginia-cancer-registry\/cancer-clusters\/<\/a> For more information about cancer data, visit the Virginia Cancer Registry Facilities Dashboard at\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/virginia-cancer-registry\/virginia-cancer-registry-facilities-dashboard\/\">www.vdh.virginia.gov\/virginia-cancer-registry\/data\/<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"># # #<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>January 7, 2026 Media Contact: Linda Scarborough, linda.scarborough@vdh.virginia.gov Virginia Cancer Registry Releases Cancer Cluster Investigation Report GATE CITY, Va. \u2013 Virginia Department of Health\u2019s Virginia Cancer Registry (VCR) has released its Scott County pediatric cancer investigation report. The report indicates that cancer rates did not meet the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) definition [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":444,"featured_media":0,"parent":16853,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"tags":[1008],"class_list":["post-16913","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","tag-cancer"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Virginia Cancer Registry Releases Cancer Cluster Investigation Report - Newsroom<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/news\/public-relations-contacts\/2026-regional-news-releases\/virginia-cancer-registry-releases-cancer-cluster-investigation-report\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Virginia Cancer Registry Releases Cancer Cluster Investigation Report - Newsroom\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"January 7, 2026 Media Contact: Linda Scarborough, linda.scarborough@vdh.virginia.gov Virginia Cancer Registry Releases Cancer Cluster Investigation Report GATE CITY, Va. \u2013 Virginia Department of Health\u2019s Virginia Cancer Registry (VCR) has released its Scott County pediatric cancer investigation report. 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