Cancer and Noncancer Risks in Atomic Bomb Survivors: Recent Results

摘要

For more than 50 years, the Radiation Effects Research Foundation (RERF) and its predecessor the Atomic Bomb Causality Commission (ABCC) have carried out epidemiological and clinical studies of the long-term effects of radiation exposure on mortality and cancer incidence risks in the atomic bomb survivors. Quantitative risk estimates based on analyses of the RERF epidemiological data are the primary basis for the formulation of radiation protection guidelines. Results from several other large-scale population-based studies (e.g. 1-3) of radiation effects will provide important insights into and, in some cases, numerical risk estimates for aspects of long-term radiation health effects that cannot be addressed by the survivor data. However, despite the emergence of important new human data on radiation effects on health, results from the survivor studies are likely to remain a focal point for assessment of the magnitude of and insights into the nature of radiation effects for the foreseeable future. In this presentation, we discuss selected findings from recent analyses of the RERF data that illustrate the continued relevance and importance of the atomic bomb survivor studies.