Mixed Data on Child Cancer Rates Near French Nuke Sites
Researchers on Wednesday reported an "excess number of cases" of childhood leukemia around 19 French nuclear plants between 2003 and 2007.
That excess cancer rate disappeared, however, when the data was extended to cover a longer period, the researchers reported in a study, published earlier this month in the International Journal of Cancer.
French scientists led by Jacqueline Clavel of France's Centre for Research in Epidemiology and Population Health found 14 cases of leukemia in children living within five kilometers (three miles) of the nuclear power facilities during the shorter six-year span.
This was nearly double the national rates for the same type of cancer in the relevant age group.
"But when we looked at the period from 1990 to 2007, this excess risk did not persist," Clavel said in an interview. "The link with the very weak ionising radiation emitted by these nuclear plants -- when they are functioning normally -- cannot be established."
Still, the apparent surfeit of more recent cases cannot be ignored, she added.
"This increased incidence is limited to the zone five kilometers around the facilities, and was not at all observed beyond that," she said by phone.
"Nor was it specific to one nuclear plant or one type of plant."
In the study, Clavel and colleagues assessed cancer risk in relation to two factors: proximity to a nuclear power source, and an estimate of exposure to radiation.
The very low doses of radiation, combined with the fact that risk did not seem to diminish gradually over distance, "does not argue in favor of radiation as a causal factor for the excess cancer cases," she added, calling for further study.
Source: Agence France Presse
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