The Nation : Cocaine-Cancer Link Told

The Drug Enforcement Administration said that half the cocaine seized in Florida by the end of 1985 contained a cancer-causing chemical, and officials warned that more than half the cocaine now on the streets nationwide is contaminated with the carcinogen. DEA Administrator John C. Lawn called the situation “extremely dangerous,” although he said the extent of the health threat will not be known until an investigation is completed by the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta. Lawn said that because of a crackdown on the chemicals previously used in making cocaine, drug traffickers are processing the drug with benzene, known to cause leukemia and genetic damage in humans.