One of the 9 patients on the City of Hope 2020 Rose Bowl float was Annie Tighe, now 20 and attending Duke University (see newspaper article in www.toxfree.net). When Annie was 4 years of age she was diagnosed with aplastic anemia, an autoimmune disease where the body stops producing enough new blood cells. The condition causes fatigue, a higher risk of infections and uncontrolled bleeding. Her parents later discovered that the origin of her illness was exposure to a termite pesticide called chlordane that was banned in 1988.
In early 2006 Annie had her first bone marrow transplantation at the City of Hope, however, 18 months later she relapsed. Only after the relapse did the family and doctors suspect an environmental factor may be causing the aplastic anemia. This led to the chlordane discovery in 2008 and the family moving out of their home. Later that year Tom Tighe, Annie’s father, contacted Dr. Richard A. Cassidy of ToxFree, Inc. to test the air in their previous home and in homes for sale. During the next 2 years Tom sampled the air of 14 homes in Pasadena, California. These homes were built between 1922 and 1970, with 10 built above a crawl space and 4 on concrete slabs.
The family’s previous home had indoor air levels of chlordane/heptachlor up to 216 ng/M3, over 10 times CDC’s No Observable Effect Levels (NOEL) with levels in the basement of up to1612 ng/M3 over 80 times the NOEL. Tom discovered that the ducting to the furnace in the basement had cracks, pulling the high levels of chlordane/heptachlor in the basement up into the living areas. Tom also stated that Annie, as a small child, liked to sit in front of the opening of the furnace duct. By removing the furnace ducts from the basement, ventilation and installing vapor barriers, the indoor air levels of chlordane/heptachlor was reduced to levels approximating the NOEL.
Sampling and testing of the 13 homes for sale in Pasadena revealed measurable levels of chlordane/heptachlor in indoor air of homes built on crawl spaces but not on concrete slabs. Also, multiple testing of the same homes showed that higher outdoor temperatures increased the indoor chlordane/heptachlor levels.
Of the 30 million homes treated with chlordane in the United States, before being banned in 1988, many still have indoor air levels that can affect the health of families in various ways. Tom Tighe went to extraordinary lengths to ensure that chlordane would not affect his family again. He also wanted to share the results of his efforts with other families.
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