9 with Cancer Sue DuPont Over West Virginia Plant Chemical

Nine Ohio and West Virginia residents who have cancer and other diseases have filed federal lawsuits this month against chemical giant DuPont Co.

The lawsuits accuse the Wilmington, Del.-based company of knowingly contaminating drinking-water supplies with a chemical known as C8, used at its plant near Parkersburg, W.Va.

The lawsuits are among about 50 such cases filed against DuPont since last April, including one alleging wrongful death.

A court-appointed science panel has found probable links between exposure to C8 and kidney cancer, testicular cancer and thyroid disease, among others.

DuPont denies all the allegations in the lawsuits. A company spokesman says they “ignore family history, lifestyle choices” and other factors that cause disease.

DuPont plans to stop making and using C8 by 2015. It’s a key ingredient in Teflon.