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| Chornobyl Studies | |
| Study of Thyroid Diseases in Young Persons near Chornobyl | |
| The Chornobyl nuclear power plant accident in the former Soviet Union in 1986 exposed large numbers of people in Ukraine, Belarus and Russia to radioactive iodines, principally I-131 which concentrates in the thyroid gland (Hatch, et al. 2005). From 1998 to 2007/8, REB conducted biennial thyroid screening examinations of individuals exposed to the accident as children (approximately 12,000 in each country). The initial report from Ukraine provides convincing evidence in support of earlier reports of a radiation-related increase in thyroid cancer among those who were children or adolescents at the time of the accident and includes individual dose estimates on all subjects. The data show a strong, approximately linear dose-response relationship. Other studies in Ukraine include individuals exposed in utero to radioiodines, who may have a raised risk of thyroid neoplasia. The relationship between radiation and autoimmune thyroiditis, follicular adenoma, and hypothyroidism have also been assessed. Future efforts will utilize national cancer registries for follow-up and various strategies for maintaining contact with these cohorts. | |
| Study of Leukemia Risk in Chornobyl Clean-up Workers | |
Following the accident at the Chornobyl nuclear power plant, hundreds of thousands of clean-up workers from Ukraine were exposed primarily to external radiation with those sent earliest receiving the highest doses (185 mGy in 1986, 112 mGy in 1987 and 47 mGy in 1988-89). Studies of cancer among clean-up workers have focused on leukemia, thus far with unclear results. REB in collaboration with other investigators have conducted a case-control study of leukemia and other hematological diseases based on a large cohort of male clean-up workers from Ukraine (~110,000), and individual doses to the bone marrow were estimated using a new method developed for this study. In part because of the intriguing findings, the study has been extended to accrue cases for an additional five years. Findings from the first phase of the study have been summarized in three companion papers (Methods, Dosimetry, Risk analysis) to be submitted to Radiation Research shortly. |
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