Re: RADSAFE digest 3135

[Steven Dapra <sjd@swcp.com>]

April 29

	On April 28 Norm Cohen wrote:

	"To say that there are no health problems associated with nuke plants is
not accurate. There are higher levels of breast cancer nearer a plant than
farther away. There are indications of higher infant mortality,e tc near
nuke plants."

	I obliquely addressed this in a posting of April 26, quoting from JAMA
[265(11):1403-1408; 3-20-91].  Jablon et. al. did not find elevated rates
of cancer near power reactors, nor were elevated rates of cancer found near
DOE installations.  In fact, overall cancer rates decreased.

	I don't know if you have read my Apr. 26 posting, Norm, but if you have
you haven't addressed this overall decrease of cancer near reactors.
Although it may be true that near some reactors breast cancer rates did
increase, other types of cancer would have had to decrease in frequency to
cause an overall lower rate of cancer.  These possible increases in breast
cancer could be attributed to clusters, and clusters were addressed in an
earlier posting by another RADSAFEr.

	What is the source (journal and full citation) for the claim that breast
cancer has increased near power plants?  Does the article or paper present
breast cancer data for the five to ten years preceding and following the
startup of the reactor?  Merely selecting one or two data points showing an
increase in any type of cancer means nothing.  We need context.

	I would also like to see a paper or article to support the claim about
infant mortality -- but not Mangano's from Environmental Epidemiology and
Toxicology.  It is plain by now that Mangano's study has some gaping holes
in it.  

Steven Dapra
sjd@swcp.com





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