OverviewThe Chernobyl Accident — An Epidemiological Perspective
Section snippets
Statement of Search Strategies Used and Sources of Information
This overview is based on a detailed review of international peer-reviewed literature published since the 2006 Chernobyl Forum Review [1], found using PubMed, Medline and ISI, as well as key papers published before that, and publications in press based on international collaborations in which the authors participated.
Radiation and thyroid cancer before the Chernobyl accident
Thyroid cancer, a rare malignancy of the endocrine system, was first linked to external radiation exposure in a 1969 study of atomic bomb survivors [3]. Although the incidence peaked 25 years after the bombings [4] and has declined over time, thyroid cancer risk continues to be significantly elevated in this cohort 60 years later [5]. Both the studies of atomic bomb survivors and of patients receiving external radiation therapy for a range of malignant and benign conditions show a linear
Non-cancer Effects
A number of non-cancer end points have been reported in populations exposed to radiation from the Chernobyl accident. These are reviewed in [1]. Few studies are available in which individual dose estimates have been reconstructed and hence interpretation of the results is complex. Of particular note are studies of cardiovascular diseases and of cataracts among liquidators, which may have important implications for radiation protection.
Thyroid Cancer
Unquestionably, the most significant scientific lesson learned from Chernobyl is that exposure to internal radiation in childhood and adolescence causes an increase in papillary thyroid cancer. The suggestion from early descriptive studies has been confirmed in analytical studies with estimated doses and data on confounding and modifying variables. Although there are some differences, the magnitude of the excess thyroid cancer risks and the findings for effect modification by age at exposure
Conclusions
Twenty-five years have passed since the Chernobyl accident led to the exposure of millions of people in Europe. Studies of populations exposed have provided significant new information on radiation risks, particularly in relation to thyroid tumours following exposure to iodine isotopes. Recent studies among Chernobyl liquidators have also provided evidence of increases in the risk of leukaemia and other haematological malignancies and of cataracts, and suggestions of increases in the risk of
Acknowledgements
This research was supported in part by the Intramural Research Program of the US National Cancer Institute, NIH, DHHS. The authors wish to acknowledge all the people in Europe—in particular in the most-affected states of Belarus, Russia and Ukraine—as well as in Japan and North America who have worked tirelessly in the last 25 years to evaluate the health impact of the Chernobyl accident and to draw lessons from this catastrophe to improve the health of the affected populations, to better
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