Families in the affluent Orange County community of Ladera Ranch say they fear a rare cancer may have affected more residents than previously known, with some pointing to widespread pesticide use as a possible factor.
Concern has been building for months after at least six children in the area were diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma, a rare cancer of the bone and soft tissue that affects only about 200 to 240 children across the United States each year.
Residents now say a grassroots effort to gather information has raised fresh alarm, with locals claiming they found signs of unusually heavy pesticide and herbicide use across the community and reports suggesting more than 60 people may have been affected by cancer.
Scientists have studied potential links between pesticide exposure and some childhood cancers, including Ewing sarcoma, but no confirmed cause-and-effect relationship has been established. Even so, families in Ladera Ranch argue the amount of chemicals being applied in public and residential areas deserves closer scrutiny.
“This issue has been looked into by several different groups of residents in Ladera Ranch going back to 2016,” attorney and resident Jackie French told The California Post. “They have all been pretty much stonewalled … and many of them ended up moving away, so the movement kind of dies out each time.”
French said she began paying closer attention after a neighbor’s 17-year-old son, Brody Matteson, was diagnosed with Ewing sarcoma. Brody died in March following his battle with the disease. After his death, his mother, Megan Matteson, posted in a community Facebook group asking whether other households had experienced cancer diagnoses.
“In this one Facebook group — and we only have about 25,000 people in our city and only a couple thousand in that group — she got 62 responses,” French said. “Some people were saying there are three people with brain cancer just on their street.”
French added that residents have also described what they believe is an unusually high number of cancer cases among pets in the area.
While those reports have not been independently verified and do not establish a cancer cluster, French said they were enough to convince many residents that the issue deserved closer examination.
For the past two months, French said she has been researching pesticide records, filing public records requests and documenting the community’s landscaping practices.
“We don’t know for sure what is causing this, and we don’t know if it’s an official cancer cluster yet,” she said. “We just know it looks highly unusual to have this much cancer, specifically rare forms of it, in our community.”
According to French, records show that 17 different pesticides and herbicides were applied throughout Ladera Ranch during June alone, with applications occurring almost daily.
She said the notices technically comply with California law but are posted only on a difficult-to-find website. She also questioned why the town continued using synthetic pesticides despite repeated requests from residents to transition toward organic landscaping methods.
“When I looked into the data, Ladera Ranch is using an insane amount of pesticides compared to any other city,” French said. “It’s the sheer volume and the fact that they are overlapping different chemicals day after day. It doesn’t make sense why they use so much, and it doesn’t make sense why they won’t stop when we ask.”
Residents have also raised concerns about rodent control.
French said squirrel poison pellets are spread throughout the community each month, and some homeowners worry dogs may be ingesting the poison or tracking pesticide residue into their homes after walks.
“We are highly concerned that dogs are eating these pellets or stepping in the chemicals because so many dogs are getting cancer or chewing at the bottoms of their paws after walks.”
Among those who chose to leave Ladera Ranch was Karan Bell, who said she spent years unsuccessfully trying to convince community leaders to address her concerns.
The 52-year-old claimed she frequently observed crews spraying near schools. “I knew I was being gaslit, and I was like, ‘OK, this is not this is not OK,’” she said.
Bell, who previously suffered toxic mold poisoning, said she first became alarmed after seeing landscaping crews wearing full protective gear while spraying chemicals near children. She said she often developed headaches after the applications.
After requesting safety information, Bell said she encountered repeated resistance from both the town and officials.
As neighbors allegedly developed cancer, suffered strokes or died, and as pets also became ill, Bell said she no longer felt safe raising her family there. Terrified for her children and puppy, she moved away in 2019.
The California Cancer Registry allegedly confirmed to French in May that it had begun reviewing the reported cases, although officials cautioned that the process could take several months. French also claimed the Orange County Health Care Agency has reopened its review after residents renewed calls for a formal investigation.
The Post reached out to both agencies for comment but did not hear back.
In a statement to The Post, the Ladera Ranch Maintenance Corporation (LARMAC), which oversees landscaping throughout the community, expressed sympathy for affected families but said there is currently no evidence linking the town’s landscaping practices to the illnesses.
“Our thoughts are with every child, parent, and loved one navigating these incredibly difficult circumstances,” the association said.
The organization said it is cooperating with public health authorities and noted that it is “not aware of any determination” identifying a specific environmental cause or connecting the town’s landscape practices to the reported cancer cases.
LARMAC said the town follows an Integrated Pest Management program designed to minimize synthetic pesticide use while emphasizing prevention, monitoring and organic fertilizers where practical.
It also announced plans to create an advisory committee consisting of homeowners, board members, staff and landscaping professionals to review current practices and recommend improvements.
French said residents welcome the committee but remain frustrated that many of their concerns have persisted for years.
UC Irvine environmental health expert Bruce Blumberg, who has advocated for reducing pesticide use in communities, said the residents’ concerns warrant careful consideration, even if no direct causal link has yet been established.
“If I were a parent living in that area, I would be strongly advocating for elimination of pesticide use,” Blumberg said. “In my opinion, it is unreasonable to risk people’s health for the cosmetic elimination of weeds and unwanted vegetation.”
Blumberg noted that many California cities have successfully transitioned to organics-first landscape management programs and argued communities should adopt safer alternatives whenever possible.
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