State responds to mother's plea to investigate teens' cancer cases

The teens all lived within a 3- to 4-mile radius of each other, prompting Harris to report concerns about a possible cancer cluster to her son’s doctor at Duke University Hospital, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services and a sarcoma organization.

She and the other families say they were under the assumption that the cases would be investigated. Robin Harris says she was told the cases would be referred to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The WRAL Investigates team found that the state did not do a thorough investigation, the CDC was not informed of the cases and the families were kept in the dark due to an "unfortunate oversight," according to a DHHS spokeswoman.

Robin Harris says she is pleased with the progress.

DHHS communications director Ricky Diaz said in a statement Thursday that the agency has asked the Harris family, as well as the other families involved, to provide more information.

"Based on their answers and discussion with the patients’ health care providers, we will decide next steps," Diaz said.

Duke Hospital and public health department officials say they rely on families to report suspected cancer clusters. State health officials say they investigate 12 to 15 possible clusters a year and that confirming one is very rare. The last confirmed cancer cluster was in Greensboro in 2012, and the cause was undetermined.