The carcinogenic risks of low-LET and high-LET ionizing radiations

Conference · Tue Aug 01 00:00:00 EDT 1989

OSTI ID:5513660

Fabrikant, J I ^[1]

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1. Lawrence Berkeley Lab., CA (USA)

New information is available concerning the carcinogenic effects of radiation and the implications for risk assessment and risk management. This information comes from further follow-up of the epidemiological studies of the Japanese atomic bomb survivors, patients irradiated medically for cancer and allied conditions, and workers exposed in various occupations. In the Japanese atomic bomb survivors the carcinogenic risks are estimated to be somewhat higher than previously, due to the reassessment of the atomic-bomb dosimetry, further follow-up with increase in the number of excess cancer deaths, particularly in survivors irradiated early in life, and changes in the methods of analysis to compute the age-specific risks of cancer. Because of the characteristics of the atomic bomb survivor series as regards sample size, age and sex distribution, duration for follow-up, person-years at risk, and type of dosimetry, the mortality experience of the atomic bomb survivors was selected by the UNSCEAR Committee and the BEIR V Committee as the more appropriate basis for projecting risk estimates for the general population. In the atomic bomb survivors, the dose-effect relationship for overall cancer mortality other than leukemia is consistent with linearity below 3 Gy, while the dose-effect relationship for leukemia, excluding chronic lymphatic leukemia, conforms best to a linear-quadratic function. The shape of the dose-incidence curve at low doses still remains uncertain, and the data do not rule out the possible existence of a threshold for an neoplasm. The excess relative risk of mortality from all cancers combined is estimated to be 1.39 per Gy (shielded kerma), which corresponds to an absolute risk of 10.0 excess cancer deaths per 10,000 PYGy; the relative risks is 1.41 at 1 Gy (organ-absorbed dose), and an absolute risk of 13.07 excess cancer deaths per 10,000 PYGy. 19 refs.

• Research Organization: Lawrence Berkeley Lab., CA (USA)
• Sponsoring Organization: DOE/ER
• DOE Contract Number: AC03-76SF00098
• OSTI ID: 5513660
• Report Number(s): LBL-27728; CONF-8908169-1; ON: DE90001540; TRN: 89-029005
• Resource Relation: Conference: 32. annual meeting of the Japan Radiation Research Society, Kitakyushu-shi (Japan), 29 Aug 1989
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
A-BOMB SURVIVORS
HISTORICAL ASPECTS
CARCINOGENESIS
RISK ASSESSMENT
MORTALITY
FORECASTING
AGE DEPENDENCE
DOSE-RESPONSE RELATIONSHIPS
DOSIMETRY
LEUKEMOGENESIS
RADIATION PROTECTION
HUMAN POPULATIONS
PATHOGENESIS
POPULATIONS
560151* - Radiation Effects on Animals- Man