Rising Brain Tumor Cases in Nurses Spark Alarm 

Rising Brain Tumor Cases in Nurses Spark Alarm 
Rising Brain Tumor Cases in Nurses Spark Alarm 

United States: Fifth-floor maternal care workers at Newton-Wellesley Hospital have shown rising anxiety levels about cancer development among their staff. 

A nurse employed at the fifth-floor maternity showed abdominal discomfort as she reported for work each morning. 

More about the news 

Many medical staff working at her hospital share the characteristics of this unidentified nurse. The nurse reported that ten employees among the fifth-floor nursing staff received a diagnosis of brain tumors where specific tumors were either cancerous or not cancerous. 

“We want reassurance because this has not been a reassuring past few months for a lot of the staff members,” she added. 

“We want to feel safe, the same way we want to make our patients feel safe,” she added, CBS News reported. 

According to her, three staff members required surgery, yet the hospital did not provide the necessary support. 

Since December, the hospital implemented investigations, which led to interviewing eight nurses with five observed benign brain tumors at the time of publication. 

Hospital authorities confirm that all the detected tumors are non-cancerous based on their employee spokesperson. 

What is the hospitating saying? 

According to Mass General Brigham/Newton-Wellesley Hospital, “no environmental risks.” 

“After we became aware of reported brain tumors in individuals who currently or previously had worked in the same area of the hospital, we conducted an extensive investigation in collaboration with the Department of Occupational Health and Safety, Newton-Wellesley Safety Officer, radiation and pharmaceutical safety offices, and external environmental consultants,” it added. 

“Every staff member who came forward was given the opportunity to be interviewed by the Occupational Health and Safety team to evaluate each diagnosis in the context of their individual medical history and risk factors. To evaluate for any possible environmental exposures in that area of the hospital, comprehensive environmental assessments following CDC guidelines began in December,” it noted, as CBS News reported. 

“The investigation found no environmental risks which could be linked to the development of a brain tumor. We presented these findings to relevant stakeholder groups, including the staff on the unit and the Massachusetts Nursing Association, and have held forums to meet with clinical and Occupational Health leaders to answer their questions. The hospital is providing the MNA with the test results from the investigation, including those of several external environmental firms,” as it continued.