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Mangano JJ. A Short Latency between Radiation Exposure from Nuclear Plants and Cancer in Young Children. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF HEALTH SERVICES 2016; 36:113-35. [PMID: 16524167 DOI: 10.2190/5gre-kq1b-utm1-khq1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Previous reports document a short latency of cancer onset in young children exposed to low doses of radioactivity. The standard mortality ratio (SMR) for cancer in children dying before age ten rose in the period 6–10 years after the Three Mile Island and Chernobyl accidents in populations most exposed to fallout. SMRs near most nuclear power plants were elevated 6–10 years after startup, particularly for leukemia. Cancer incidence in children under age ten living near New York and New Jersey nuclear plants increased 4–5 years after increases in average strontium-90 in baby teeth, and declined 4–5 years after Sr-90 averages dropped. The assumption that Sr-90 and childhood cancer are correlated is best supported for a supralinear dose-response, meaning the greatest per-dose risks are at the lowest doses. Findings document that the very young are especially susceptible to adverse effects of radiation exposure, even at relatively low doses.
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Mueller W, Gilham C. Childhood leukemia and proximity to nuclear power plants: A systematic review and meta-analysis. J Cancer Policy 2015. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jcpo.2015.10.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
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Ahn YO, Li ZM. Cancer risk in adult residents near nuclear power plants in Korea - a cohort study of 1992-2010. J Korean Med Sci 2012; 27:999-1008. [PMID: 22969244 PMCID: PMC3429841 DOI: 10.3346/jkms.2012.27.9.999] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/20/2012] [Accepted: 06/07/2012] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
This study evaluated cancer risk for adult residents near Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs) in Korea through a valid prospective cohort study during 1992-2010. The study cohort was composed of 11,367 adults living within a five km radius from the NPPs for the exposed and 24,809 adults for the non-exposed or reference cohort set at two different levels of proximity; 5-30 km radius and more than 30 km radius away from NPPs. In 303,542.5 person-years of follow-up, a total of 2,298 cancer cases of all sites, or 1,377 radio-inducible cancers diagnosed during 1992-2008 were ascertained. Multiple adjusted hazard ratios and 95% confidence intervals were estimated using multivariate Cox proportional hazard model. There were no epidemiological evidence for increased risk of cancer due to radiation from NPPs. Radiological study results or surveillance data of radiation doses around NPPs could be well documented for risk estimation of radio-inducible cancers, instead of epidemiological study results of the long-time required. Continuous surveillance of quantitative measures of dose levels around NPPs and radiation exposures to the residents is warranted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yoon-Ok Ahn
- Department of Preventive Medicine, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
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Sermage-Faure C, Laurier D, Goujon-Bellec S, Chartier M, Guyot-Goubin A, Rudant J, Hémon D, Clavel J. Childhood leukemia around French nuclear power plants-The geocap study, 2002-2007. Int J Cancer 2012; 131:E769-80. [DOI: 10.1002/ijc.27425] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2011] [Accepted: 12/20/2011] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Kinlen L. Childhood leukaemia, nuclear sites, and population mixing. Br J Cancer 2011; 104:12-8. [PMID: 21063418 PMCID: PMC3039801 DOI: 10.1038/sj.bjc.6605982] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2010] [Revised: 10/12/2010] [Accepted: 10/13/2010] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
The excess of childhood leukaemia (CL) in Seascale, near the Sellafield nuclear reprocessing site in rural NW England, suggested that an epidemic of an underlying infection, to which CL is a rare response, is promoted by marked population mixing (PM) in rural areas, in which the prevalence of susceptibles is higher than average. This hypothesis has been confirmed by 12 studies in non-radiation situations. Of the five established CL excesses near nuclear sites, four are associated with significant PM; in the fifth, the Krummel power station in Germany, the subject has not been thoroughly investigated.
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Affiliation(s)
- L Kinlen
- Cancer Epidemiology Unit, University of Oxford, Richard Doll Building, Headington, Oxford, OX3 7LF, UK.
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Ma F, Lehnherr M, Fornoff J, Shen T. Childhood cancer incidence in proximity to nuclear power plants in Illinois. ARCHIVES OF ENVIRONMENTAL & OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH 2011; 66:87-94. [PMID: 24484365 DOI: 10.1080/19338244.2010.506497] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
The objective of this study was to examine childhood cancer incidence in proximity to nuclear power plants in Illinois. Cancer cases diagnosed among Illinois children 0 to 14 years old from 1986 through 2005 were included in the study. Standardized incidence ratio (SIR) was calculated for the geographic zones defined by the proximity to nuclear power plants. The results show that children living within 10 miles of any nuclear power plant did not have significant increase in incidence for leukemia (period 1986-1995: SIR = 0.85 [95% confidence interval, CI: 0.54-1.26]; period 1996-2005: 1.23 [0.91-1.64]), lymphomas [period 1986-1995: 1.38 [0.77-2.27]; period 1996-2005: 0.77 [0.37-1.42]), or other cancer sites. Neither did the children living 10 to 20 miles or 20 to 30 miles from any nuclear power plants. This study did not find any significant childhood cancer excess among children living near nuclear plants and did not observe any dose-response patterns.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fangchao Ma
- a Division of Epidemiologic Studies,Illinois Department of Public Health , Springfield , Illinois , USA
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Wakeford R, Darby SC, Murphy MFG. Temporal trends in childhood leukaemia incidence following exposure to radioactive fallout from atmospheric nuclear weapons testing. RADIATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL BIOPHYSICS 2010; 49:213-227. [PMID: 20309707 DOI: 10.1007/s00411-010-0266-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2009] [Accepted: 01/21/2010] [Indexed: 05/29/2023]
Abstract
Notably raised rates of childhood leukaemia incidence have been found near some nuclear installations, in particular Sellafield and Dounreay in the United Kingdom, but risk assessments have concluded that the radiation doses estimated to have been received by children or in utero as a result of operations at these installations are much too small to account for the reported increases in incidence. This has led to speculation that the risk of childhood leukaemia arising from internal exposure to radiation following the intake of radioactive material released from nuclear facilities has been substantially underestimated. The radionuclides discharged from many nuclear installations are similar to those released into the global environment by atmospheric nuclear weapons testing, which was at its height in the late-1950s and early-1960s. Measurements of anthropogenic radionuclides in members of the general public resident in the vicinity of Sellafield and Dounreay have found levels that do not differ greatly from those in persons living remote from nuclear installations that are due to ubiquitous exposure to the radioactive debris of nuclear weapons testing. Therefore, if the leukaemia risk to children resulting from deposition within the body of radioactive material discharged from nuclear facilities has been grossly underestimated, then a pronounced excess of childhood leukaemia would have been expected as a consequence of the short period of intense atmospheric weapons testing. We have examined childhood leukaemia incidence in 11 large-scale cancer registries in three continents for which data were available at least as early as 1962. We found no evidence of a wave of excess cases corresponding to the peak of radioactive fallout from atmospheric weapons testing. The absence of a discernible increase in the incidence of childhood leukaemia following the period of maximum exposure to the radioactive debris of this testing weighs heavily against the suggestion that conventional methods are seriously in error when assessing the risk of childhood leukaemia from exposure to man-made radionuclides released from nuclear installations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard Wakeford
- Dalton Nuclear Institute, The University of Manchester, Pariser Building, G Floor, Sackville Street, PO Box 88, Manchester, M60 1QD, UK.
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Buffler PA, Kwan ML, Reynolds P, Urayama KY. Environmental and Genetic Risk Factors for Childhood Leukemia: Appraising the Evidence. Cancer Invest 2009. [DOI: 10.1081/cnv-46402] [Citation(s) in RCA: 150] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
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Laurier D, Jacob S, Bernier MO, Leuraud K, Metz C, Samson E, Laloi P. Epidemiological studies of leukaemia in children and young adults around nuclear facilities: a critical review. RADIATION PROTECTION DOSIMETRY 2008; 132:182-90. [PMID: 18922823 DOI: 10.1093/rpd/ncn262] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
The existence of an increased risk of childhood leukaemia near nuclear installations is a recurrent issue. A review of the related epidemiological literature is presented here. Results for 198 nuclear sites throughout 10 countries were included in the review. In addition to local studies, 25 multi-site studies have been published for eight countries. A large variability was noticed in the quality of the data as well as in the definition of the study population and in the methods of analysis. Many studies present important limits that make the results difficult to interpret. The review confirms that some clusters of childhood leukaemia cases exist locally. However, results based on multi-site studies around nuclear installations do not indicate an increased risk globally. Many studies were launched to investigate possible origins of the observed clusters around specific sites, but up to now, none of the proposed hypotheses have explained them.
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Affiliation(s)
- D Laurier
- Institute for Radiological Protection and Nuclear Safety, IRSN, DRPH/SRBE, BP17, F-92262 Fontenay-aux-Roses Cedex, France.
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Fucic A, Brunborg G, Lasan R, Jezek D, Knudsen L, Merlo D. Genomic damage in children accidentally exposed to ionizing radiation: A review of the literature. MUTATION RESEARCH-REVIEWS IN MUTATION RESEARCH 2008; 658:111-123. [DOI: 10.1016/j.mrrev.2007.11.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2007] [Revised: 10/31/2007] [Accepted: 11/01/2007] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
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Hoffmann W, Terschueren C, Richardson DB. Childhood leukemia in the vicinity of the Geesthacht nuclear establishments near Hamburg, Germany. ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVES 2007; 115:947-52. [PMID: 17589605 PMCID: PMC1892150 DOI: 10.1289/ehp.9861] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2006] [Accepted: 03/15/2007] [Indexed: 05/16/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND During 1990-1991 a childhood leukemia cluster was observed in the sparsely populated region surrounding two nuclear establishments southeast of Hamburg, Germany. Since then, several new cases have been reported. Recently a possible accidental release of radionuclides in 1986 was hypothesized. OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to analyze the childhood leukemia incidence in this area since 1990. METHODS All incident cases (< 15 years of age) were ascertained during 1990-2005 within a 5-km radius of the Krümmel nuclear power plant. We derived standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) using county and national leukemia incidence rates as referents. We stratified analyses by calendar period and attained age, and by subdividing the study region into areas north versus south of the Elbe river. RESULTS Fourteen cases were ascertained in the study area, whereas 4.0 were expected based on national referent rates [1990-2005: SIR = 3.5; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.9-5.9]. The excess was not confined to the early 1990s; for the more recent time period 1999-2005, the SIR is still elevated (SIR = 2.7; 95% CI, 0.9-6.2). SIRs of greatest magnitude were observed for children 0-4 years of age (SIR = 4.9; 95% CI, 2.4-9.0) and for residents south of the Elbe (SIR = 7.5; 95% CI, 2.8-16.4). CONCLUSIONS The incidence in this region is significantly higher than the childhood leukemia incidence for Germany as a whole. To date, no unique hazards have been identified in this population. The fact that the elevated rates have persisted in this community for > 15 years warrants further investigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wolfgang Hoffmann
- Institute for Community Medicine, Section Epidemiology of Health Care and Community Health, Ernst-Moritz-Arndt University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany.
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Silva-Mato A, Viana D, Fernández-SanMartín MI, Cobos J, Viana M. Cancer risk around the nuclear power plants of Trillo and Zorita (Spain). Occup Environ Med 2003; 60:521-7. [PMID: 12819287 PMCID: PMC1740569 DOI: 10.1136/oem.60.7.521] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
AIM To investigate the association between cancer risk and proximity of place of residence to the Guadalajara nuclear power plants: Trillo and Zorita. METHODS Case-control study. Cases were patients admitted with cancer and controls were non-tumorous patients, both admitted to Guadalajara Hospital (period 1988-99). Exposure factor: place of residence (areas within 10, 20, and 30 km of each plant). Odds ratios (ORs) of those areas closest to the plants were calculated with respect to those furthest away; a linear trend analysis was also performed. RESULTS In the extreme areas in the vicinity of Trillo, an OR of 1.71 was obtained (95% CI 1.15 to 2.53), increasing in magnitude in the subgroup of more radioinducible tumours and in the period considered as post-latency (1997-99). Risk increased linearly with proximity to the two plants, significantly in Trillo (p < 0.01) but not in Zorita (p = 0.19). CONCLUSIONS There is an association between proximity of residence to Trillo and cancer risk, although the limitations of the study should be kept in mind when interpreting the possible causal relation.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Silva-Mato
- Department of Sanitary and Socio-Medical Sciences, Area of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Biostatistics and Epidemiology Units, University of Alcalá, Madrid, Spain.
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Mangano JJ, Sherman J, Chang C, Dave A, Feinberg E, Frimer M. Elevated childhood cancer incidence proximate to U.S. nuclear power plants. ARCHIVES OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH 2003; 58:74-82. [PMID: 12899207 DOI: 10.3200/aeoh.58.2.74-82] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Numerous reports document elevated cancer rates among children living near nuclear facilities in various nations. Little research has examined U.S. rates near the nation's 103 operating reactors. This study determined that cancer incidence for children < 10 yr of age who live within 30 mi (48 km) of each of 14 nuclear plants in the eastern United States (49 counties with a population > 16.8 million) exceeds the national average. The excess 12.4% risk suggests that 1 in 9 cancers among children who reside near nuclear reactors is linked to radioactive emissions. If cancer incidence in 5 western states is used as a baseline, the ratio is closer to 1 in 5. Incidence is particularly elevated for leukemia. Childhood cancer mortality exceeds the national average in 7 of the 14 study areas.
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Sharp L, Black RJ, Harkness EF, McKinney PA. Incidence of childhood leukaemia and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in the vicinity of nuclear sites in Scotland, 1968-93. Occup Environ Med 1996; 53:823-31. [PMID: 8994402 PMCID: PMC1128616 DOI: 10.1136/oem.53.12.823] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES The primary aims were to investigate the incidence of leukaemia and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in children resident near seven nuclear sites in Scotland and to determine whether there was any evidence of a gradient in risk with distance of residence from a nuclear site. A secondary aim was to assess the power of statistical tests for increased risk of disease near a point source when applied in the context of census data for Scotland. METHODS The study data set comprised 1287 cases of leukaemia and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma diagnosed in children aged under 15 years in the period 1968-93, validated for accuracy and completeness. A study zone around each nuclear site was constructed from enumeration districts within 25 km. Expected numbers were calculated, adjusting for sex, age, and indices of deprivation and urban-rural residence. Six statistical tests were evaluated. Stone's maximum likelihood ratio (unconditional application) was applied as the main test for general increased incidence across a study zone. The linear risk score based on enumeration districts (conditional application) was used as a secondary test for declining risk with distance from each site. RESULTS More cases were observed (O) than expected (E) in the study zones around Rosyth naval base (O/E 1.02), Chapelcross electricity generating station (O/E 1.08), and Dounreay reprocessing plant (O/E 1.99). The maximum likelihood ratio test reached significance only for Dounreay (P = 0.030). The linear risk score test did not indicate a trend in risk with distance from any of the seven sites, including Dounreay. CONCLUSIONS There was no evidence of a generally increased risk of childhood leukaemia and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma around nuclear sites in Scotland, nor any evidence of a trend of decreasing risk with distance from any of the sites. There was a significant excess risk in the zone around Dounreay, which was only partially accounted for by the sociodemographic characteristics of the area. The statistical power of tests for localised increased risk of disease around a point source should be assessed in each new setting in which they are applied.
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Affiliation(s)
- L Sharp
- Department of Medicine and Therapeutics, University of Aberdeen, Foresterhill, Scotland
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Viel JF, Pobel D, Carré A. Incidence of leukaemia in young people around the La Hague nuclear waste reprocessing plant: a sensitivity analysis. Stat Med 1995; 14:2459-72. [PMID: 8711281 DOI: 10.1002/sim.4780142114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
The objectives are to investigate the incidence of childhood leukaemia in young people around the French nuclear waste reprocessing plant (La Hague, Normandy) for the period 1978-1992, and to check the sensitivity of the results to the choice of disease clustering tests and reference rates. The performance of three statistical procedures are compared: a conventional approach; a Poisson maximum test, and an extraction mapping technique. On the whole, the results are in general agreement and demonstrate the apparent existence of a distinct cluster of childhood leukaemia, contiguous and south-east of the La Hague nuclear facility.
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Affiliation(s)
- J F Viel
- Department of Public Health, Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Besançon, France
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Olshan AF. Lessons learned from epidemiologic studies of environmental exposure and genetic disease. ENVIRONMENTAL AND MOLECULAR MUTAGENESIS 1995; 25 Suppl 26:74-80. [PMID: 7789365 DOI: 10.1002/em.2850250611] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/22/2023]
Abstract
The induction of germ cell mutations with ionizing radiation and chemicals has been clearly demonstrated in experimental animal test systems. Less is known about the effects of environmental and other exposures on human germ cells. Epidemiologic studies of atomic bomb and childhood cancer survivors and their offspring have generally not indicated an excess risk for a variety of adverse reproductive outcomes and childhood diseases, including those due to germ cell mutations. Other epidemiologic studies, including the investigation of cancer among the offspring of fathers employed at the Sellafield nuclear facility in Great Britain and studies of paternal occupation and birth defects, have found associations. This paper reviews these studies and the methodologic problems inherent in the epidemiologic approach to evaluating environmentally induced germ cell mutagenesis in humans. Epidemiologic studies incorporating newly developed techniques for the detection of mutations and abnormalities in sperm may provide the sensitivity needed to determine precisely the magnitude of risk.
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Affiliation(s)
- A F Olshan
- Department of Epidemiology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599, USA
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