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E Cardis

Publications and source records attributed to E Cardis.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2007

Radiation exposure to the population of Europe following the Chernobyl accident.

On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Chernobyl accident an attempt has been made to evaluate the impact of the Chernobyl accident on the global burden of human cancer in Europe. This required the estimation of radiation doses in each of the 40 European countries. Dose estimation was based on the analysis and compilation of data either published in the scientific literature or provided by local experts. Considerable variability has been observed in exposure levels among the European populations. The average individual doses to the thyroid from the intake of (131)I for children aged 1 y were found to vary from approximately 0.01 mGy in Portugal up to 750 mGy in Gomel Oblast (Belarus). Thyroid doses to adults were consistently lower than the doses received by young children. The average individual effective doses from external exposure and ingestion of long-lived radiocaesium accrued in the period 1986-2005 varied from approximately 0 in Portugal to approximately 10 mSv in Gomel Oblast (Belarus) and Bryansk Oblast (Russia). The uncertainties in the dose estimates were subjectively estimated on the basis of the availability and reliability of the radiation data that were used for dose reconstruction in each country.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Validation of short term recall of mobile phone use for the Interphone study.

AIM: To validate short term recall of mobile phone use within Interphone, an international collaborative case control study of tumours of the brain, acoustic nerve, and salivary glands related to mobile telephone use. METHODS: Mobile phone use of 672 volunteers in 11 countries was recorded by operators or through the use of software modified phones, and compared to use recalled six months later using the Interphone study questionnaire. Agreement between recalled and actual phone use was analysed using both categorical and continuous measures of number and duration of phone calls. RESULTS: Correlations between recalled and actual phone use were moderate to high (ranging from 0.5 to 0.8 across countries) and of the same order for number and duration of calls. The kappa statistic demonstrated fair to moderate agreement for both number and duration of calls (weighted kappa ranging from 0.20 to 0.60 across countries). On average, subjects underestimated the number of calls per month (geometric mean ratio of recalled to actual = 0.92, 95% CI 0.85 to 0.99), whereas duration of calls was overestimated (geometric mean ratio = 1.42, 95% CI 1.29 to 1.56). The ratio of recalled to actual use increased with level of use, showing underestimation in light users and overestimation in heavy users. There was substantial heterogeneity in this ratio between countries. Inter-individual variation was also large, and increased with level of use. CONCLUSIONS: Volunteer subjects recalled their recent phone use with moderate systematic error and substantial random error. This large random error can be expected to reduce the power of the Interphone study to detect an increase in risk of brain, acoustic nerve, and parotid gland tumours with increasing mobile phone use, if one exists.

Case-Control Studies↗
PubMed2006

External dose estimation for nuclear worker studies.

Epidemiological studies of nuclear workers are an important source of direct information on the health effects of exposure to radiation at low doses and low dose rates. These studies have the important advantage of doses that have been measured objectively through the use of personal dosimeters. However, to make valid comparisons of worker-based estimates with those obtained from data on A-bomb survivors or persons exposed for medical reasons, attention must be given to potential biases and uncertainties in dose estimates. This paper discusses sources of error in worker dose estimates and describes efforts that have been made to quantify these errors. Of particular importance is the extensive study of errors in dosimetry that was conducted as part of a large collaborative study of nuclear workers in 15 countries being coordinated by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. The study, which focused on workers whose dose was primarily from penetrating gamma radiation in the range 100 keV to 3 MeV, included (1) obtaining information on dosimetry practices and radiation characteristics through the use of questionnaires; (2) two detailed studies of exposure conditions, one of nuclear power plants and the other of mixed activity facilities; and (3) a study of dosimeter response characteristics that included laboratory testing of 10 dosimeter designs commonly used historically. Based on these efforts, facility- and calendar year-specific adjustment factors have been developed, which will allow risks to be expressed as functions of organ doses with reasonable confidence.

Artifacts↗
PubMed2005

Mobile phone use and risk of acoustic neuroma: results of the Interphone case-control study in five North European countries.

There is public concern that use of mobile phones could increase the risk of brain tumours. If such an effect exists, acoustic neuroma would be of particular concern because of the proximity of the acoustic nerve to the handset. We conducted, to a shared protocol, six population-based case-control studies in four Nordic countries and the UK to assess the risk of acoustic neuroma in relation to mobile phone use. Data were collected by personal interview from 678 cases of acoustic neuroma and 3553 controls. The risk of acoustic neuroma in relation to regular mobile phone use in the pooled data set was not raised (odds ratio (OR) = 0.9, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.7-1.1). There was no association of risk with duration of use, lifetime cumulative hours of use or number of calls, for phone use overall or for analogue or digital phones separately. Risk of a tumour on the same side of the head as reported phone use was raised for use for 10 years or longer (OR = 1.8, 95% CI: 1.1-3.1). The study suggests that there is no substantial risk of acoustic neuroma in the first decade after starting mobile phone use. However, an increase in risk after longer term use or after a longer lag period could not be ruled out.

Case-Control Studies↗
PubMed2005

Risk of cancer after low doses of ionising radiation: retrospective cohort study in 15 countries.

OBJECTIVES: To provide direct estimates of risk of cancer after protracted low doses of ionising radiation and to strengthen the scientific basis of radiation protection standards for environmental, occupational, and medical diagnostic exposures. DESIGN: Multinational retrospective cohort study of cancer mortality. SETTING: Cohorts of workers in the nuclear industry in 15 countries. PARTICIPANTS: 407 391 workers individually monitored for external radiation with a total follow-up of 5.2 million person years. MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS: Estimates of excess relative risks per sievert (Sv) of radiation dose for mortality from cancers other than leukaemia and from leukaemia excluding chronic lymphocytic leukaemia, the main causes of death considered by radiation protection authorities. RESULTS: The excess relative risk for cancers other than leukaemia was 0.97 per Sv, 95% confidence interval 0.14 to 1.97. Analyses of causes of death related or unrelated to smoking indicate that, although confounding by smoking may be present, it is unlikely to explain all of this increased risk. The excess relative risk for leukaemia excluding chronic lymphocytic leukaemia was 1.93 per Sv (< 0 to 8.47). On the basis of these estimates, 1-2% of deaths from cancer among workers in this cohort may be attributable to radiation. CONCLUSIONS: These estimates, from the largest study of nuclear workers ever conducted, are higher than, but statistically compatible with, the risk estimates used for current radiation protection standards. The results suggest that there is a small excess risk of cancer, even at the low doses and dose rates typically received by nuclear workers in this study.

Dose-Response Relationship, Drug↗
PubMed2002

Studies of cancer risk among Chernobyl liquidators: materials and methods.

The current paper presents the methods and design of two case-control studies among Chernobyl liquidators-one of leukaemia and non-Hodgkin lymphoma, the other of thyroid cancer risk-carried out in Belarus, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Russia. The specific objective of these studies is to estimate the radiation induced risk of these diseases among liquidators of the Chernobyl accident, and, in particular, to study the effect of exposure protraction and radiation type on the risk of radiation induced cancer in the low-to-medium- (0-500 mSv) radiation dose range. The study population consists of the approximately 10000 Baltic, 40000 Belarus and 51 000 Russian liquidators who worked in the 30 km zone in 1986-1987, and who were registered in the Chernobyl registry of these countries. The studies included cases diagnosed in 1993-1998 for all countries but Belarus, where the study period was extended until 2000. Four controls were selected in each country from the national cohort for each case, matched on age, gender and region of residence. Information on study subjects was obtained through face-to-face interview using a standardised questionnaire with questions on demographic factors, time, place and conditions of work as a liquidator and potential risk and confounding factors for the tumours of interest. Overall, 136 cases and 595 controls after receiving their consent were included in the studies. A method of analytical dose reconstruction has been developed, validated and applied to the estimation of doses and related uncertainties for all the subjects in the study. Dose-response analyses are underway and results are likely to have important implications to assess the adequacy of existing protection standards, which are based on risk estimates derived from analyses of the mortality of atomic bomb survivors and other high dose studies.

Baltic States↗
PubMed2002

Study of a selection of 10 historical types of dosemeter: variation of the response to Hp(10) with photon energy and geometry of exposure.

An international collaborative study of cancer risk among workers in the nuclear industry is tinder way to estimate direetly the cancer risk following protracted low-dose exposure to ionising radiation. An essential aspect of this study is the characterisation and quantification of errors in available dose estimates. One major source of errors is dosemeter response in workplace exposure conditions. Little information is available on energy and geometry response for most of the 124 different dosemeters used historically in participating facilities. Experiments were therefore set up to assess this. using 10 dosemeter types representative of those used over time. Results show that the largest errors were associated with the response of early dosemeters to low-energy photon radiation. Good response was found with modern dosemeters. even at low energy. These results are being used to estimate errors in the response for each dosemeter type, used in the participating facilities, so that these can be taken into account in the estimates of cancer risk.

Calibration↗
PubMed2002

[Epidemiological data and radiation risk estimates].

The results of several major epidemiology studies on populations with particular exposure to ionizing radiation should become available during the first years of the 21(st) century. These studies are expected to provide answers to a number of questions concerning public health and radiation protection. Most of the populations concerned were accidentally exposed to radiation in ex-USSR or elsewhere or in a nuclear industrial context. The results will complete and test information on risk coming from studies among survivors of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bombs, particularly studies on the effects of low dose exposure and prolonged low-dose exposure, of different types of radiation, and environmental and host-related factors which could modify the risk of radiation-induced effects. These studies are thus important to assess the currently accepted scientific evidence on radiation protection for workers and the general population. In addition, supplementary information on radiation protection could be provided by formal comparisons and analyses combining data from populations with different types of exposure. Finally, in order to provide pertinent information for public health and radiation protection, future epidemiology studies should be targeted and designed to answer specific questions, concerning, for example, the risk for specific populations (children, patients, people with genetic predisposition). An integrated approach, combining epidemiology and studies on the mechanisms of radiation induction should provide particularly pertinent information.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

A method to assess predominant energies of exposure in a nuclear research centre--Saclay (France).

A study of dosimetric errors is under way within an international collaborative study of cancer risk among workers in the nuclear industry. The objective is to quantify errors in the estimated photon doses to individual organs used for cancer risk estimation. One source of errors is the response of old dosemeters in workplace exposure conditions. As these conditions are not well known, the International Study must rely on expert estimations. This paper describes a method to assess the proportion of the dose from photons in three energy ranges (< 100, 100-300, > or = 300 keV) using the responses under filters of a multi-element dosemeter. The method was tested on experimental and simulated data and provides a good estimate of the proportion of dose from photons below 100 keV, the most critical for dosemeter response. It was applied to personnel readings in one facility, confirming the experts' estimation. Beyond the International Study, the method has implication for the monitoring and protection of workers.

Female↗
PubMed2001

Radiation risk estimates in the beginning of the 21st century.

In the early years of the 21st century, results from a number of epidemiologic studies of populations with specific ionizing radiation exposures will become available. These include populations with accidental exposures in the former Soviet Union and elsewhere and populations with occupational exposures from routine operations of nuclear power plants. The strengths and limitations of these studies are reviewed together with the radiation protection questions they may answer. Many of these studies will provide specific information to complement the atomic-bomb survivor studies, particularly the effects of dose-rate and exposure protraction, modifiers of radiation risks (both environmental and host factors), and different types of radiation. These studies will therefore be important as a test of the adequacy of the current scientific bases for the radiation protection of workers and the general public. An example is thyroid cancer risk in young children following the Chernobyl accident, which has brought attention to a very high sensitivity of very young children that was difficult to assess on the basis of atomic-bomb data alone. Radiation protection will also benefit from formal comparisons and combined analyses of data from populations with different exposure patterns and exposures. Finally, future epidemiological studies will be most valuable if they are well focused, designed specifically to answer outstanding radiation protection questions. An integrated approach based on epidemiology and mechanistic studies, in which epidemiologic studies are designed to test specific mechanistic hypotheses and realistic mechanistic models are used for the analysis of epidemiological data, will probably be the most fruitful for radiation protection.

Accidents, Occupational↗
PubMed2001

Review of the epidemiologic literature on EMF and Health.

Exposures to extremely low-frequency electric and magnetic fields (EMF) emanating from the generation, transmission, and use of electricity are a ubiquitous part of modern life. Concern about potential adverse health effects was initially brought to prominence by an epidemiologic report two decades ago from Denver on childhood cancer. We reviewed the now voluminous epidemiologic literature on EMF and risks of chronic disease and conclude the following: a) The quality of epidemiologic studies on this topic has improved over time and several of the recent studies on childhood leukemia and on cancer associated with occupational exposure are close to the limit of what can realistically be achieved in terms of size of study and methodological rigor. b) Exposure assessment is a particular difficulty of EMF epidemiology, in several respects: i) The exposure is imperceptible, ubiquitous, has multiple sources, and can vary greatly over time and short distances. ii) The exposure period of relevance is before the date at which measurements can realistically be obtained and of unknown duration and induction period. iii) The appropriate exposure metric is not known and there are no biological data from which to impute it. c) In the absence of experimental evidence and given the methodological uncertainties in the epidemiologic literature, there is no chronic disease for which an etiological relation to EMF can be regarded as established. d) There has been a large body of high quality data for childhood cancer, and also for adult leukemia and brain tumor in relation to occupational exposure. Among all the outcomes evaluated in epidemiologic studies of EMF, childhood leukemia in relation to postnatal exposures above 0.4 microT is the one for which there is most evidence of an association. The relative risk has been estimated at 2.0 (95% confidence limit: 1.27-3.13) in a large pooled analysis. This is unlikely to be due to chance but, may be, in part, due to bias. This is difficult to interpret in the absence of a known mechanism or reproducible experimental support. In the large pooled analysis only 0.8% of all children were exposed above 0.4 microT. Further studies need to be designed to test specific hypotheses such as aspects of selection bias or exposure. On the basis of epidemiologic findings, evidence shows an association of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis with occupational EMF exposure although confounding is a potential explanation. Breast cancer, cardiovascular disease, and suicide and depression remain unresolved.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

Cancer consequences of the Chernobyl accident in Europe outside the former USSR: a review.

The accident which occurred during the night of April 25-26, 1986 in reactor 4 of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in the Ukraine released considerable amounts of radioactive substances into the environment. Outside the former USSR, the highest levels of contamination were recorded in Bulgaria, Austria, Greece and Romania, followed by other countries of Central, Southeast and Northern Europe. Studies of the health consequences of the accident have been carried out in these countries, as well as in other countries in Europe. This report presents the results of a critical review of cancer studies of the exposed population in Europe, carried out on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the Chernobyl accident. Overall, three is no evidence to date of a major public health impact of the Chernobyl accident in the field of cancer in countries of Europe outside the former USSR.

Adolescent↗