State: No Unusual Cancer Stats Near Medical Manufacturer

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (CBS DETROIT/ AP) — A significant increase in cancer among people near a medical-device manufacturer in Grand Rapids wasn't found according to the Michigan heath department.

Viant Medical has been under scrutiny over its use of ethylene oxide, a colorless gas linked to cancer. In March, the company said it would stop sterilizing equipment at the facility by the end of the year. State regulators have issued at least four pollution violations over the past two years.

The only exception over a 15-year period was a blood cancer, but the department says it was based on 25 cases and wasn't significantly higher than the overall state rate.

The health department says there are a few caveats to its work. It's possible that people have left the area. The department also says the state cancer registry doesn't have information to make a link to environmental contamination.

© 2019 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this story.