Health Risks of Ionizing Radiation: - Clark University

of leukemia was measured over a larger area around
each site. The only site associated with a significant
excess of cases was Dounreay. In a similar analysis
of childhood brain cancer and other non-LNHL
cancers at the seven sites Sharp et al. (1999) showed
a significant excess in only one case, central nervous
system (CNS) tumors around the Rosyth nuclear
submarine base (136 observed and 111.5 expected
cases).
The Office of Population Censuses and Surveys
(OPCS) published a comprehensive report on cancer
mortality near nuclear facilities in the UK in 1987
(Cook-Mozaffari et al. 1987, Forman et al. 1987).
Many relative risk estimates were made for different
groupings of age at exposure, facility, and cancer;
13 estimates were significantly positive and 38
were significantly negative. For example, childhood
lymphoid leukemia mortality at all facilities was
significantly increased (RR 2.00, p=0.005) while
adult mortality from leukemia, myeloma, or any
cancer was significantly below normal 15 . Childhood
leukemia results were in some cases confusing-
mortality increased with proximity to five facilities
that began operations before 1955 but this trend
was reversed for seven facilities running since
1960. Overall, however, the evidence supports
an increased leukemia risk. When the young age
group was restricted to 0-9 years the results became
stronger: within 6 miles of the pre-1955 facilities
the lymphoid leukemia RR was 3.95 (p=0.001) and
there was a stronger trend with proximity to the
facilities (p=0.035). These results were validated
using a different methodological approach (Cook-
Mozaffari et al. 1989a) and it was shown that
potential sites of nuclear installations did not have
the same childhood leukemia risk as existing sites
(Cook-Mozaffari et al. 1989b) 16 .
12.4 Nuclear facilities outside the US and UK
La Hague reprocessing plant in Normandy, France
Communities Near Nuclear Facilities 151
began operating in 1966. Cancer mortality around
La Hague was analyzed by Dousset (1989), who
found no difference between rates within 10 km of
the facility and rates in the rest of the departement
de la Manche (where the facility is located). Viel
and Richardson (1990), after considering the reports
from Seascale and Caithness, focused on childhood
leukemia mortality. Between 1968 and 1986 there
were 21 deaths from childhood leukemia within 35
km of La Hague, consistent with rates for the rest of
the departement. Hattchouel et al. (1995) examined
childhood leukemia mortality nationwide and found
what appeared to be a decrement with an SMR of
0.80 (0.62-1.01); younger ages did not appear to be
at higher risk in this study.
In contrast to these results for leukemia mortality,
studies of childhood leukemia incidence around La
Hague demonstrated an apparent cluster 17 within
10 km of the site (Viel et al. 1993, Viel et al. 1995,
Guizard et al. 2001) and led to a case-control study
that was published in 1997 (Pobel and Viel). The
case-control study presented evidence that exposure
to local beaches and seafood were risk factors
for childhood leukemia. Cases and controls were
grouped according to how often mothers spent time
at local beaches, how often children spent time at
local beaches, and how often children ate local fish
and shellfish. In all three cases there were significant
exposure-response trends. Children who played at
the beach more than once a month showed a relative
risk of 2.87 (1.05-8.72) and children who ate local
seafood more than once a week showed a relative
risk of 2.66 (0.91-9.51). These authors also found
a significant risk associated with living in granite
homes, a potential radon risk (RR 1.18; 1.03-1.42).
Hoffman et al. (1997) investigated a childhood
leukemia cluster in Elbmarsch, Germany, near the
Krummel nuclear power plant. From 1990 to 1995
there were six diagnosed cases within 5 km of
Krummel, giving an SIR of 4.6 (2.1-10.3). All six
cases were from the south side of the Elbe river,
15 The relative risks of adult leukemia, myeloma, and all cancers were 0.88 (p=0.04), 0.79 (p=016), and 0.96 (p