May 29, 2003

Contact: John Scarffe, KU Endowment Association, (785) 832-7336.

Kansas Masons, KU researchers help relieve cancer concerns in Scott County

SCOTT CITY -- Before she died of a rare illness at age 49, Scott County resident Glenda Mulch began to question the health of her neighbors. She and other members of the community feared that an unusually high number of people in the sparsely populated county suffered from serious illnesses such as breast cancer.

They wanted to know whether the number of chronic-illness cases was actually out of proportion or only seemed to be, said her husband, Robert, who has continued to pursue answers since her death.

"When you're dealing with an illness, you look at everything differently," Robert said. "You wonder, why here and why me? You ask, is there an increase at all, or is it because it's a small community and you know so many people?"

The Kansas Masonic Foundation Inc. is helping Scott County residents find answers to their questions through its financial support of the Kansas Cancer Institute at the University of Kansas Medical Center in Kansas City, Kan. Researchers from the institute will present their latest findings June 3 in Scott County.

With the assistance of the foundation, the cancer institute had the resources to lead a collaborative research effort to explore cancer in Scott County. The Topeka-based foundation, which recently pledged $280,000 for the cancer institute, has given more than $4.9 million for cancer treatment and research at KU since 1974.

"We'll always be big supporters of cancer prevention and treatment," said Mark Nelson, executive director of the foundation. "Cancer is such a devastating disease; it affects so many people that it has to be full steam ahead until we eradicate it."

The foundation provides support for the cancer institute's research, prevention and education programs, including clinical trials for breast cancer research; the prostate cancer program; drug development; and outreach clinics in the Kansas communities of Hays, Pittsburg, Chanute and Independence.

"The Kansas Masonic Foundation is vital to our operation," said William Jewell, M.D., director of the cancer institute. "Their gifts have made it possible for the institute to develop. It's impossible to stress how important they are to us."

The foundation's support helped KU get involved in Scott County beginning in 1998, when a Kansas State University professor invited cancer institute scientists to visit the county. There they teamed up with researchers from K-State who were conducting family health history surveys and concentrating on the prevalence of neurological disorders. The research conducted by K-State researchers also was supported by the Kansas Masonic Foundation.

KU researchers surveyed community children and teachers about smoking habits. They also compared the state health records of cancer incidence and deaths in 37 western Kansas counties with those of Scott County. To find out whether the county had excessive levels of metals, pesticides or other chemicals -- but not yet knowing if there was a direct link between those pollutants and certain cancers -- cancer institute researchers asked engineers from the KU School of Engineering to conduct air and water sample testing at locations such as Scott City Elementary School. The research also included education and cancer prevention efforts in the community.

So far, the five years of interviews, surveys and environmental testing have provided some reassurance to residents, said John Neuberger, principal investigator and associate professor of preventive medicine and public health at the KU School of Medicine.

The number of pancreatic and kidney cancer cases -- those county physicians thought to be most prevalent -- weren't higher than in peer Kansas counties. However, Scott County does have statistically more cases of prostate cancer than comparable counties. In addition, while no pollutants in the air were found in concentrations that would affect human health, Neuberger said, concentrations of nitrates in well water slightly exceeded federal limits, and amounts of arsenic exceeded proposed federal limits in several wells. When researchers return to Scott County on June 3, they will share the results of the latest research, a case-control study that examined which exposures prostate cancer patients had more of than a control group.

Greg Unruh, CEO of Scott County Hospital, said the area's health care workers were grateful for the research.

"This was a marvelous opportunity for a small rural community to have access to the skilled and talented resources of the University of Kansas and Kansas State," Unruh said. "We were afforded a great deal of attention to what we felt was a localized problem."

Robert Mulch said the Kansas Masonic Foundation had helped when other organizations could not fully support the research.

"We really struggled to find someone to fund this, and we really appreciated the Masonic Foundation's help," said Robert, who is a judge and a farmer in Scott County. "It's a fantastic demonstration of their willingness to help our community."

Established in 1966, the Kansas Masonic Foundation Inc. is a nonprofit organization that supports charitable, educational and scientific programs. The foundation, which annually distributes about $385,000 to the organizations it supports, is funded by voluntary gifts and endowments from Kansas Masons, their families and friends.

About $1.3 million of the foundation's gifts have counted during KU First: Invest in Excellence, the largest fund-raising campaign in the history of KU. With a goal of $500 million, the Kansas University Endowment Association is conducting KU First on behalf of the university through 2004 to raise funds for scholarships, fellowships, professorships, capital projects and program support. KU Endowment is an independent, non-profit organization serving as the official fund-raising and fund-management organization for KU.