A provincial government study of cancer cases in Fort Chipewyan says that while overall cancer rates are higher than expected, more study is needed to determine “if there is a risk posed by living” in the northern Alberta community.

The study confirms the worries of people living downstream from the oilsands who believe their health is being affected by oilsands development. The province, however, says there’s no reason to worry. “The overall findings show no cause for alarm,” says Dr. Tony Fields of Alberta Health Services. “They do, however, point to the need for some further investigation.” The study analyzed cancer cases from 1995 through 2006. Researchers expected to find 39 cases over that period; instead, they found 51.

Health Minister Ron Liepert says lifestyle factors could be responsible. “I think that it’s fair to say that there are issues in remote areas such as Fort Chip that go beyond just health care,” says Liepert, adding that the government wants to “ensure that the lifestyle of residents in that community is not in any way inferior to elsewhere in the province.” Liepert says the province’s aboriginal relations department will follow up with the community. “It’ll no longer, in my view, be collared by some of these allegations that had been made in the past. Hopefully, we can put that to bed as a result of this study and focus more on improving the lives of residents of that community.”

Liepert’s response to the study didn’t sit well with Fort McMurray doctor Michel Sauvé, who’s president of the Northern Lights Medical Staff Association. “Liepert needs to give his head a shake if he thinks his broad and dismissive reference to ‘lifestyles’ will console or reassure Fort Chip patients or the families of the deceased,” wrote Sauvé in a letter to the Edmonton Journal. “…Top politicians and bureaucrats have, sadly, acted like industry apologists, dissing the medical whistleblowers and condoning or conducting attacks against our medical licences. Our government and its agents should concentrate instead on doing the right thing, right now: deal openly and fairly with the problems downstream from the oilsands.”

Liberal leader David Swann says the report’s findings are concerning, and he’s calling on both the provincial and federal health departments to follow up on the study’s findings. “Very clearly there needs to be urgent action,” he says. The report recommends analyzing “many potential risk factors” in Fort Chipewyan, including lifestyle risk factors and environmental exposures.