Cancer Is Rising Among Young Adults in the Heartland

The Washington Post is out with an investigative piece that has a troubling takeaway: Cancer rates among young adults are rising faster in the Corn Belt than anywhere else in the nation. Specifically, the top six corn-producing states—Iowa, Nebraska, Illinois, Minnesota, Indiana, and Kansas—have had "significantly higher" cancer rates among ages 15 to 49 since 2015. Data from 2022 shows that these states have a 5% higher rate among young adults as well as for the overall population. Iowa in particular has the fifth-highest rate of cancer among adults under 50—up from 18th in 2000.

"It's kind of insane this is happening," says college senior and Iowa native Mackenzie Dryden, referring to her own cancer diagnosis and that of four other recent grads of her small high school. The reasons behind the surge remain unclear, and the Post raises the question of whether the land itself is to blame. Researchers point to a mix of possible factors: long-term exposure to farm chemicals, high natural radon levels, and widespread nitrate pollution in groundwater attributed to longtime fertilizer use. "We are a place where a lot of agrochemicals are used, both historically and currently," says Hans-Joachim Lehmler, director of the University of Iowa's Environmental Health Sciences Research Center. "That raises concerns about exposures."

The spike is particularly notable for skin and kidney cancers, with young women in the region facing a 66% higher skin cancer risk than peers elsewhere. For young men, it's 35% higher. On top of everything else, young people are often diagnosed late, after doctors initially dismiss symptoms, and they face long-term side effects that upend plans for families and careers. Read the full story, which examines the ongoing safety debate unfolding in state legislatures over widely used pesticides such as glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup.