Thursday, May 7 • 10 AM – 11 AM CDT
Virtual Via Zoom
Sign Up and More Info Here
Overview
A virtual conversation on pesticide exposure and cancer risk in agricultural communities, grounded in data and reporting.
What role does pesticide exposure play in cancer risk across agricultural communities?
This virtual panel brings together journalists, researchers, a physician, and a cancer survivor’s lived experience to discuss the growing body of data examining the potential link between pesticide use and cancer outcomes. Grounded in reporting, the discussion will explore what’s known, what remains uncertain, and how these risks are experienced in real communities.
The conversation will connect data, policy, and personal impact to better understand what’s driving cancer risk in farm country.
Our current panel lineup
Dr. Richard Deming, MercyOne Cancer Center
Kerri Johannsen, Iowa Environmental Council
Amanda Starbuck, Food & Water Watch
Carey Gillam, The New Lede
Lisa Lawler, Iowa cancer survivor
Ben Felder, Investigate Midwest (moderator)
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Want to learn more before the panel?
If you’re curious to dig in a bit ahead of time, we put together a short reading list to frame some of the topics we’ll be discussing:
As part of this project, Investigate Midwest published an investigation in January looking at how counties with higher pesticide rates typically have higher cancer rates. You can also look up cancer and pesticide rates in your own community.
- Carey Gillam, editor in chief at The New Lede, has investigated pesticide companies for years and recently reported on how Bayer cited support from President Trump in its case before the U.S. Supreme Court.
- Seventy-one percent of counties that spray the most glyphosate have late-stage non-Hodgkin lymphoma incidence rates above the national average, according to a new data analysis from Food and Water Watch.
- The Iowa Environmental Council has been studying the state’s growing cancer rate for years and recently published a report finding ties between the most common cancers in Iowa and environmental risk factors, including pesticides.