[ RadSafe ] Increase in cancer in Sweden can be traced to Chernobyl

[Jim Hoerner]

Increase in cancer in Sweden can be traced to Chernobyl

The incidence of cancer in northern Sweden increased following the accident 
at the nuclear power plant in Chernobyl in 1986. This was the finding of a 
much-debated study from Linköping University in Sweden from 2004.

Was the increase in cancer caused by the radioactive fallout from Chernobyl 
or could it be explained by other circumstances? New research from Linköping 
University provides scientific support for the Chernobyl connection.

“This issue is important because the indicated increased risk may come to 
influence the prevailing exposure limits for the population. Enhanced 
knowledge of the risks entailed by radioactive radiation is key to work for 
radiation safety and makes it possible to prevent diseases,” says Martin 
Tondel, a physician and researcher in environmental medicine who will soon 
be defending his doctoral dissertation Malignancies in Sweden after the 
Chernobyl Accident in 1986.

In two studies using different methods, Martin Tondel has shown a small but 
statistically significant increase in the incidence of cancer in northern 
Sweden, where the fallout of radioactive cesium 137 was at its most intense.

The cancer risk increased with rising fallout intensity: up to a 20-percent 
increase in the highest of six categories. This means that 3.8 percent of 
the cancer cases up to 1999 can be ascribed to the fallout. This increased 
risk, in turn, is 26 times higher than the latest risk estimate for the 
survivors of the atom bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, whose exposure was 
many times higher.

[This is not credible, IMO.  Someone needs to scrutinize this work, please. 
- JH]

The increase in Tondel’s studies came a remarkably short time after the 
disaster, since it is usually assumed that it takes decades for cancer to 
develop. The dissertation discusses the interpretation of the research 
findings from the perspective of the theory of science.

The conclusion is that there is scientific support for a connection between 
the radioactive fallout and the increase in the number of cancer cases.  
[That IS credible. - JH]

Source: Linköping University

http://www.physorg.com/printnews.php?newsid=99758918



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