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Re: Re: Source of cancer data



John,

Epideiologists who would choose Field's Iowa incidence in 431 over 

Cohen's

mortality in 100,000 plus (showing such consistent results), must be

inexperienced.





Howard Long MD MPH, Family Doctor and Epidemiologist

363 St. Mary St., Pleasanton CA, 94566

(925) 846-4411, Fax 4524, Page 787-0253 hflong@pacbell.net



John,



If I were pressed to choose between your experience and the 

experience of the following individuals, I think I would choose them.

I think this site supports my view.  

http://www.cheec.uiowa.edu/misc/radon.html



COMMENTS FROM OTHER SCIENTIST

"The Iowa Radon Lung Cancer Study, conducted by Drs. R. William 

Field, Charles F. Lynch and colleagues represents by far the most 

substantial study of residential radon health effects accomplished to 

date. By rigorous analysis of radon exposures for women with lung 

cancer and matched controls, this study has shown a clear association 

between lung cancer and radon exposures in homes. 



A major advantage of this study was the high radon levels found in 

Iowa homes, which showed about a 50% increase in lung cancer risk at 

the EPA action level of 4 pCi/L. The Iowa lung Cancer Study is a 

major milestone for confirming lung cancer incidence due to radon 

exposures as predicted by the National Academy of Sciences BEIR VI 

report. The researchers should be highly commended for this 

definitive study showing substantial lung cancer risks due to radon 

exposures in homes." 



Raymond Johnson, Certified Health Physicist

Past-President, Health Physics Society

--------------------------------------- 



Dear Bill, 



"I wanted to commend you and the other investigators on the Iowa 

Radon Lung Cancer Study. I believe the methods you used to reduce the 

inherent random error associated with ascertaining long-term 

residential radon exposure are critical to validly assessing the lung 

cancer risk from this source. As you correctly point out the random 

error in estimating radon exposure has the potential to substantially 

underestimate the slope of the dose-response curve. Your estimates of 

risk are similar to my own in our study of lung cancer among Missouri 

women, where we used historic estimates of radon exposure from 

cumulative measures of radon progeny in glass. 



I believe that most studies published to date have been ineffective 

in reducing measurement error and their dose-response results have 

suffered from a bias toward the null. I look forward to the 

discussion your results will generate and urge you to complete the 

analysis of you radon progeny in glass measurements data. Along with 

your current manuscript, that data should help clarify the true 

nature of the dose-response curve between residential radon and lung 

cancer risk. Again congratulations on a job well done." 



Sincerely, 



Michael Alavanja, Dr.P.H.

Senior Investigator,

Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics

Rockville, M.D. 20892

-------------------------------------- 



"The Iowa Study is a significant addition to our already strong 

understanding of indoor radon and lung cancer. Its particular 

importance lies in the careful methodologic work done by the 

investigators on some nagging scientific issues--particularly the 

estimation of lifetime exposure to radon." 



Dr. Jon Samet

Professor and Chairman

Department of Epidemiology

School of Hygiene and Public Health

Johns Hopkins University

Suite 604l

615 N. Wolfe Street

Baltimore, Maryland 

------------------------------------------- 



U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY VIEW OF THE STUDY 



The Iowa study is exceptionally well designed and well executed. It 

adds to the body of knowledge, which designates residential radon as 

the second leading cause of lung cancer. It supports EPA's position 

and the National Academy of Sciences' Institute of Medicine's 1999 

report that radon exposure in homes is a public health problem. It 

confirms EPA's, the Center for Disease Control's, and the Surgeon 

General's positions that all homes should be tested for radon, and 

all homes testing over 4 pCi/L should be fixed. In terms of 

scientific advancements, the study breaks new ground in estimating 

total individual radon exposure. 



See EPA web site:http://www.epa.gov/iaq/radon/ 













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