UAF asks state to review Gruening cancer concerns

Chancellor pledges transparency as officials await findings

By Amber McCain

The University of Alaska Fairbanks has asked the Alaska Department of Health to help evaluate reports of cancer cases among people who worked in Gruening Building, Chancellor Russ Vander Lugt told The Sun Star on Oct. 5. The university is awaiting the state’s guidance on potential next steps.

Vander Lugt said he was not aware of any environmental hazards identified in the building but that university leadership was taking the concerns seriously.

“I personally have spent a lot of time in that building,” he said. “I care about the people that have spent time there.”

The review follows concerns raised on Facebook earlier this fall by former UAF sociology faculty member Sine Anahita and others describing cancer diagnoses among people who had worked in the building, raising questions about possible cancer exposures.

According to UAF’s online update, the university has reviewed Gruening’s building history for potential environmental exposures and has not yet found evidence of an environmental hazard. The Alaska Department of Health will analyze UAF’s findings alongside data from the Alaska Cancer Registry to look for unusual cancer patterns.

UAF awaits findings from state review

The review could take several months, according to Julie Queen, vice chancellor for administrative services. Queen said the university is following the state’s process and does not yet know whether the concerns point to a problem.

“We don't yet know enough about it if it's a problem,” Queen said. “There are experts that know this, that work in this world, that know how to evaluate things like this.”

“Right now, it's really just a question that we've raised, and they are helping us with the next steps,” she said.

When asked whether The Sun Star would receive a copy of the state’s findings, Queen said it was too early to know what documentation the process would produce or whether there would be a report to share.

Marmian Grimes, UAF’s communications director, said the university had not gone through this process before and did not know whether it would result in a formal report or another type of final product.

UAF’s website says an initial assessment could be available by the end of 2026 or in early 2027.

Queen said the university intended to share information, though officials could not yet specify what would be available.

Vander Lugt said the university intended to build trust through transparency and share relevant information that could be released appropriately.

“I think this team's committed to work through trust and transparency and not be sheltering data that we have that's helpful data, that's releasable data,” he said.

Anahita said she hopes the review will help establish whether the reported cases are connected to the building.

“I think this is the first time that we’ve actually documented the extent of the problem,” she told The Sun Star. “I want justice.”