A HIGH Valleyfield woman has launched a petition asking the Scottish Government to look into why so many West Fifers are dying from cancer.

Kate Paton, who grew up in the village, was shocked when she moved back to her home town last year and realised how many people had the disease. 

She believes the issue comes from the previous dumping of unsafe material in the lagoons around the area, which have since been filled in, and decided to start a petition asking Holyrood to investigate.

“The cancer rates in the surrounding area are absolutely atrocious,” she said.

“It seems not a week goes by when someone doesn’t die of cancer.

“I’m originally from High Valleyfield but I lived in London for a long time and just moved back last year and started hearing about how many people were affected.

“I thought the petition might help get something done. 

“They can’t just sit back and let people die.”

The petition on change.org has already gathered almost 1,000 signatures and in it, Ms Paton said: “The cancer rate in High Valleyfield, Fife and surrounding villages is far higher than normal. 

“I believe this is because of what has been dumped into the lagoons near the village. An investigation is needed urgently. And sooner rather than later. I believe a tragic mistake has been made by dumping this so near villages and people.”

The issue has also been brought up in other West Fife villages, with Saline and Steelend Community Council going as far as contacting NHS Fife about the figures.

Chairman David Chisholm said: “The number of people receiving a diagnosis of cancer has been a talking point for several years now.

"But towards the end of last year, a number of people died over a relatively short period and it did begin to seem disproportionate in a community of about 1,500 people. I myself can name nine or 10 people.”

Mr Chisholm decided to contact the community health section of NHS Fife after being shown Ms Paton’s petition and said although the community council wasn’t looking to make the same connection between the cancer and the toxic landfill, they still wanted some more information.

“The wording of the petition suggests that the deaths might be linked to toxic material being included in landfill, in one case now the site of a children’s play area,” he said. “We in Saline and Steelend are not seeking to make this connection.

“In statistical terms, the number of cancer cases may not be significant but I felt that we should obtain accurate information before drawing any conclusions.”