_______________________________________________________________

UNC Chapel Hill Study on Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill conducted independent research examining non-Hodgkin lymphoma cases among service members who worked with nuclear missiles at Malmstrom Air Force Base. The research, which analyzed data provided by the Torchlight Initiative, found that it was very unlikely that the high rates of blood cancer would have occurred by chance. The study also noted that the modest population size constrained the power of the analyses. This research is significant as it provides the first independent analysis of cancer data since the Air Force announced its investigation into health concerns among current and former members of the service's nuclear missile community.

The Torchlight Initiative, a grassroots group of current and former missileers, created a cancer registry for those who worked on intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs). The university's report used this registry and compared it to national rates in the National Cancer Institute's Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results Program (SEER). The findings showed that non-Hodgkin lymphoma is occurring at higher rates and at younger ages than the national average.

The research was not sponsored by the Department of Defense, the Air Force, or the U.S. government. It is considered a starting point for future research and suggests potential underlying risk factors or exposures unique to the missile community.

_______________________________________________________

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2025/04/25/new-study-finds-statistically-significant-blood-cancer-diagnoses-montana-missile-base.html

"Independent Study Raises Alarm About Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma at Malmstrom Air Force Base"

Military.com | By Thomas Novelly

Published April 25, 2025 at 10:52am ET

_______________________________________________________________

Independent Study Raises Alarm

An independent academic study has raised concerns about non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) among service members who served at Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana. The study, conducted by a doctoral candidate and professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, found that service members were diagnosed with NHL at younger ages compared to the general population, suggesting a possible link between their service and the occurrence of cancer.

The research analyzed self-reported cancer data from the Torchlight Initiative, a nonprofit organization involving current and former service members who worked with America's intercontinental ballistic missiles. The Torchlight Initiative's registry includes more than 635 reported cancer cases, with the study focusing on 18 cases of NHL.

According to the findings, the probability of 18 missileers within the study population being diagnosed with NHL is 2.1 in 1,000 trillion, indicating that the high rates of blood cancer are extremely unlikely to have occurred by chance. This suggests that there may be underlying risk factors or exposures unique to this population that need further investigation.

The Air Force has previously investigated potential cancer clusters among missileers, including a site evaluation and sampling for potential chemical and biological contaminants at Malmstrom in 2001.  However, the new research emphasizes the need for immediate steps to understand the scope of the problem, identify the cause or causes, and mitigate the risks.