Cancer Rate at GTE Plant Spurs Probe

State health officials began an investigation Monday into what managers and employees at a GTE plant fear is a high rate of cancer among workers.

John Stobierski, state Public Health Department spokesman, said the agency will try to determine whether seven diagnosed cases of cancer in the last 18 months at the GTE-Sylvania plant are related to materials used there in the manufacturing of fluorescent light bulbs. The plant employs about 800 people.

“I would not guess . . . whether seven cases is high,” he said. “We need to factor in age, sex and types of cancer to determine if there is a link between the cases and the workplace. If we see the same types of cancer or cancer known to be occupation-related, then this would be cause for concern.”

Plant managers said they requested studies by the state and the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health last week after employees expressed concern about the seven diagnosed cancer cases that have already resulted in five deaths.

A spokeswoman for NIOSH’s regional office in Boston said the institute had not yet decided whether it would examine the workers’ complaints.