AKWESASNE -- St. Regis Mohawk Tribe officials are asking their members to take a medical questionnaire as they ponder a lawsuit against industry giants that polluted the area with cancer-causing polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB).

“Members of the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe have historically suffered from a much higher than average level of cancers and other illnesses due to Polychlorinated Biphenyls (“PCBs”) in our blood, and new research shows that certain PCBs cause increased risks for three particular kinds of cancer: Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma (“NHL”), breast cancer, and melanoma,” Tribal Council said in a news release.

They are downstream from the former General Motors and Reynolds plants. The cleanup at the old GM site turned up pits of pure PCB product buried underground at concentrations 250 percent higher than initially anticipated, officials announced in 2014. There is a cleanup underway in the Grasse River where PCB is being removed from sediment there that came from the nearby Alcoa West plant. That river runs downstream into the St. Lawrence, which in turn flows east to Akwesasne.

“A new study by the International Agency for Research and Cancer has confirmed that certain PCBs are now known to cause cancer,” Chief Eric Thompson said in a prepared statement. “As a result, we are working with attorneys and health experts to identify damages suffered by the Tribe, as tribal members have been exposed to PCBs released from sources that include pollution from nearby industrial facilities; such as Alcoa, General Motors and Reynolds. If an individual or family member, including those that are deceased, have been impacted they may be able to recover damages.”

Lawyers, with experts, will help the tribe or tribal members diagnosed with NHL, breast cancer, or melanoma, investigate whether the tribe, or tribal members, may have any claims against PCB manufacturers for damages caused by PCB releases and exposures, according to the release. The lawyers’ and their experts’ work at this time is purely exploratory to figure out the nature of any claims for damages that the tribe may have, or whether individual tribal members may file a lawsuit, Tribal Council said.

For them to determine whether there is sufficient evidence to bring a case for individual tribal members or for the tribe, the lawyers and their experts want to learn what kind of information or evidence has already been generated on tribal members’ health and injuries, and what damages the tribe itself has suffered in conducting a clinic intake. To that end, they have worked together to design a questionnaire that can help identify relevant health and lifestyle information, according to Tribal Council.

“We encourage individuals to telephone Health Services and answer a few very short screening questions that will help the lawyers determine their eligibility to file a lawsuit,” Chief Beverly Cook said in a prepared statement. “We are asking that anyone who participated in a health study in the past, that measured the PCB levels in your blood, to give permission to the lawyers to obtain those blood test results.”

All the information provided in the questionnaire will be treated as privileged and confidential and will be shared only with the attorneys and their consultants, in aid of the attorneys’ evaluating claims, and in determining whether individuals wish to pursue a lawsuit with these attorneys as their counsel. Answering the short survey will help the lawyers decide if it would make sense to have you next complete a lengthier questionnaire, with the aid of medical staff, Tribal Council said.

“Participating in the questionnaires and allowing access to your previous blood tests does not bind individuals to participating in a lawsuit,” Chief Michael Conners said in a prepared statement. “Even if you do not want to participate in any potential lawsuit, your information can help the Tribe in determining whether pursuing a legal remedy is the best course of action.”

Those who are members of the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe and you or someone in their family has been diagnosed with hon-Hodgkin lymphoma (“NHL”), breast cancer, or melanoma are asked to call the tribe’s Medical Clinic to answer screening questions by calling (518) 358-3141.