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Blood tests revealed that people in affected communities had C8 levels significantly higher than the general U.S. population. The geometric mean for serum PFOA in the area was 32.91 ng/mL, 500% higher than the representative American population.
DuPont began using the chemical in 1951 as a means to smooth out the lumps in Teflon, even though its chief toxicologist at the time warned that it was toxic.
C8 was found to have contaminated not just public water systems, but also numerous private wells in the region. The lawsuit involving C8 alleged that DuPont released millions of pounds of the chemical into the Ohio River and into the air from its plant in Parkersburg, West Virginia, causing thousands of persons to suffer injuries, including kidney and testicular cancer, and ulcerative colitis.