Sept. 11-Related Cancers May Take Years

[Khephra]

WASHINGTON -- A patchwork of post-Sept. 11 health screening programs will not detect increases in more serious, long-term illnesses like cancer, experts told Congress Wednesday.

Doctors and government investigators told a House subcommittee it could take decades to detect all the health woes stemming from the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attack and subsequent cleanup around New York's World Trade Center.

The two most common conditions found so far are lung damage and post-traumatic stress disorder.

The government is currently funding six separate health screening programs to monitor those who came into contact with dust from ground zero in New York. Each program is run separately; none are funded beyond 2009.

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