Sternglass and Gould paper in Int J Health Services

["Jeffrey A. Leavey" <certhp@vnet.IBM.COM>]

I want to let everyone know that Sternglass and Gould have
a new paper out in the International Journal of Health
Services Vol 23 Number 4 October 1993:

Breast Cancer: Evidence for a Relation to Fission Products
in the Diet

Summary: Sternglass and Gould used reported breast cancer
data and NRC nuclear power plant release data to draw
a relation between unspecified fission products
and breast cancer incidence/mortality. The paper shows
time-line graphs of breast cancers in NY City and Conn.
with the reported releases from Indian Point, Haddam Neck,
Millstone, Oyster Creek, Nine Mile Point, and Ginna. The
data reportedly shows breast cancers increasing immediately
or within a few years of particular plant startup or
"large" release. They then conclude that chronic low level
exposures allow the oxygen free-radical effect to
cause these reported cancer increases and nuclear
power reactors are the cause.

Comments: My biggest complaint with this paper is that
it fails to consider other confounding sources, namely
population shifts and chemical exposures. Given the
amount of contaminated surface and ground water, this
is a major omission. Also the authors vaguely attempt to
name I-131 and Sr-90 as the major culprits; both of
these yield little breast dose.

If anyone has read this paper I would like very much
to hear your comments, especially about the free-radical
effect.

Thanks,
Jeff
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Jeffrey Leavey      certhp@vnet.ibm.com
X-ray Lithography Program - IBM Corp.
East Fishkill, NY  12533 - 914-892-4595
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