A National Taiwan University study confirms that residents of Taixi and Mailiao next to the Sixth Naphtha Cracker Complex have a cancer rate 1.29 times higher than elsewhere, with even higher proportions among women and the elderly

The College of Public Health at National Taiwan University this year published a paper titled "Significantly Increased Cancer Incidence Among Residents Living Near a Petrochemical Industrial Zone: A Twelve-Year Retrospective Cohort Study," examining whether residents living near the Sixth Naphtha Cracker Complex in Yunlin have a higher cancer incidence. Yuan Tzu-hsuan, assistant professor at the College of Public Health at National Taiwan University, said the study is consistent with previous research and once again proves that residents of Taixi and Mailiao, the townships closest to the Sixth Naphtha Cracker Complex, are more prone to cancer.

The study also ruled out cancer incidence caused by personal habits such as smoking and betel nut chewing. Residents of Taixi and Mailiao in the high-exposure group had a cancer incidence 1.29 times that of residents of other townships in Yunlin in the low-exposure group. The cancer types included nasopharyngeal cancer, esophageal cancer, small intestine cancer, colorectal cancer, skin cancer, breast cancer, cervical cancer, ovarian cancer, prostate cancer, bladder cancer, kidney cancer, brain cancer and thyroid cancer, with small intestine cancer, colorectal cancer and cervical cancer being the most common.