Family's problem raises mold debate

Monday, June 25, 2001
Associated Press,AP

CINCINNATI (AP) -- A home-improvement project turned into a possible health threat
for a family when they discovered mold linked to cancer beneath their wallpaper.

With the help of a contractor, the Vanden Bosch family of West Chester, about 15 miles
north of Cincinnati, discovered mold had eaten holes in their drywall and sub-flooring.

Lab results detected Stachybotrys and Aspergillus, two common indoor molds that have
been linked to some forms of cancer, hemorrhages and convulsions.

The upper-respiratory problems of Mary Vanden Bosch and her 7- year-old son, Peter,
have become worse since the family began their project in March, so the family is living
in a hotel while workers clean the house.

Their mold problem is not uncommon.

The Ohio Department of Health is working with federal and Cincinnati officials to clean up
mold and improve air quality in schools. Three schools closed temporarily this year
because of mold.

Experts, however, disagree on the severity of effects of the fungus.

"Mold has great public-health impact,'' said Eckhart Johanning, director of the Fungal
Research Group in Albany, N.Y. "If we can make a small dent in this, I think we will
make a great difference in people's quality of life.''

Ronald Gots, director of the International Center for Toxicology and Medicine in
Washington, disagreed.

"People abandon houses and close schools, and there's no reason for it,'' he said.
"It's just out of control. It's totally out of control.''

Gots said advertising from contractors for mold testing is contributing to what he says
is undue panic.

"There is a wildly active and very chaotic industry made up of all sorts of people with varying
expertise about what to test and how to test and how much cleanup is necessary,'' he said.
"And there's very little medical input.''

Cincinnati Health Commissioner Malcolm Adcock said mold usually is just an allergen.

"I'm not downplaying it, but I think it's been raised to more of a concern than it warrants,
given the types of problems that it normally causes,'' he said. "People don't think a thing
at all about taking a walk in the woods. If you're out walking through the woods with
decaying material on the floor of the forest, you're being exposed to literally thousands
of kinds of mold.''

Mrs. Vanden Bosch doesn't see it that way.

She's awaiting test results taken from a skin lesion to find out whether she has cancer.
Her blood also has been tested for mold and its toxins.

"I wonder if I'll ever feel safe there again,'' she said of her home.

Officials at the Environmental Protection Agency Office of Research and Development are
hoping to find information that can shed light on mold problems.

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