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The News That Matters about the Nuclear Industry Fukushima Chernobyl Mayak Three Mile Island Atomic Testing Radiation Isotope

Essential to remove nuclear industry pressure from Radiation and Health Study

Beyond Nuclear, 22 May, 2010, The time for a full-scale bona-fide health study on the impacts of radiation exposure to communities downwind and downstream of US nuclear power facilities is long overdue. The responsibilities to assure that this study is fair and independent are immense.

Given the growing political promotion of nuclear power currently underway, the study’s development, execution and interpretation will no doubt be a tug-of-war. The effort for an independent health study on the impacts from nuclear power facilities raises many of the same questions that have dogged the nuclear industry from the exposure of “down winders” in St. George, Utah to atomic testing fallout, the communities around the Three Mile Island accident, the Massachusetts cancer study around the Pilgrim nuclear power plant  and entire countries contaminated by the Chernobyl explosion.

One continuing focus among many will to be to monitor how the NAS policy will be applied to the review and vetting of hundreds of potential committee members for final committee selection.  The recusal of Dr. Meserve with his obvious”impaired objectivity” is a good first step and welcome sign. However, the task to watchdog this massive government effort in the public interest is only beginning.

May 22, 2010 Posted by | health, USA | , , , , , , | Leave a comment

For some older women, radiation unnecessary after cancer surgery

Study: No radiation after surgery ok for certain breast cancer patients By Miriam Falco  Paging Dr. Gupta –  CNN Medical News  May 20, 2010, Older breast cancer patients who have their small tumors surgically removed get little benefit from radiation treatment, according to a study released Thursday by the American Society of Clinical Oncologists. Continue reading →

May 21, 2010 Posted by | 2 WORLD, health | , , , | Leave a comment

Skin cancer risk from Airport Radiation Scanning

The research also shows children are more vulnerable to radiation damage, because they have more cells dividing at any one time than when fully grown and a radiation-induced mutation can lead to cancer in adulthood……

Airport scanners may increase risk of cancer Alfred Woody Wang’s Kewl Blog, 20 May 2010, Radiation “dangerously underestimated” * Skin around face, neck most at risk US scientists are warning that radiation from controversial full-body airport scanners has been dangerously underestimated and could lead to an increased risk of skin cancer – particularly in children. Continue reading →

May 20, 2010 Posted by | 2 WORLD, health | , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Any extra nuclear radiation is a grave danger

There is no baseline population of unaffected people anymore…Any additional dose of highly efficient ionising radiation (alpha and beta) when delivered internally is a grave risk to modern humans.

What’s a safe dose of radiation? Paul Langley’s Nuclear History Blog, 19 May 2010,  Depends where it the source is and what cell it is dosing. How often that cell is dividing and whether succeeding generations from that cell are similarly dosed by an adjacent internal emitter (hot particle). In such a case, no amount of external environmental monitoring will detect the threat. Which is probably why Dr Johnson suggested surveying PEOPLE rather then the environment years after the contamination events. Continue reading →

May 19, 2010 Posted by | 2 WORLD, health | , , , , , | Leave a comment

Radiation scanning of airline travellers – scientific doubts on safety

“There really is no other technology around where we’re planning to X-ray such an enormous number of individuals. It’s really unprecedented in the radiation world”..

Scientists question safety of airport full body scanners, Gadling.com, by Scott Carmichael   May 18th 2010 “…..Since the first of these machines made it to an airport, the TSA has been very vocal about telling the traveling public that they are 100% safe, and that we have nothing to worry about. Except for the risk of too much exposure to ionizing radiation that is… Continue reading →

May 19, 2010 Posted by | 2 WORLD, health | , , , | Leave a comment

Dangerous radiation scanning for illegal immigrants banned

French ban X-ray scans for illegal immigrants as radiation makes them ‘too dangerous’,  Mail Online, By Jack Doyle and Lee Sorrell 14th May 2010

British officials searching for illegal immigrants in trucks have been told to stop using an expensive new X-ray scanner because of radiation fears. The machine was unveiled last month as part of a £15million investment in UK border controls in Calais.

But now France’s nuclear regulator has warned it can only be used to look for illegal goods. Using it to find people is banned in case the radiation damages their health,  …French ban X-ray scans for illegal immigrants as radiation makes them ‘too dangerous’ | Mail Online

May 15, 2010 Posted by | France, health | , , , , , | Leave a comment

Cancer, birth defects from Chernobyl radiation release

Experience Eastern Europe’s Recent History, Just Beware the Radiation @Signature9 14 May, 2010, “…….Chernobyl and the nearby town of Pripyat experienced the results of nuclear meltdown in April 1986. Over 300,000 people were evacuated from surrounding areas and the compromised reactor was subsequently encased in a concrete shell. Radiation levels rose across most of Europe, resulting in higher rates of birth defects , chromosomal disorders, and cancers.

May 15, 2010 Posted by | EUROPE, health | , , , , | Leave a comment

Increased breast cancer risk in ionising radiation

“Our work shows that radiation can change the microenvironment of breast cells, and this in turn can allow the growth of abnormal cells with a long-lived phenotype that has a much greater potential to be cancerous,”

Study Raises New Concerns About Radiation and Breast Cancer « Berkeley Lab News Center, 14 May 2010, “………It is well established that exposure to ionizing radiation can result in mutations or other genetic damage that cause cells to turn cancerous. Continue reading →

May 14, 2010 Posted by | health, USA | , , , , | Leave a comment

Ionising radiation a bigger cancer risk to young people

Younger Patients Face Double Radiation Risk from CT Scans: Study, Ethiopian Review, May 13th, 2010 Younger patients run a higher risk of health problems from radiation exposure caused by computed tomography (CT) scans, according to a new study. Researchers at the Medical University of South Carolina found that the radiation risk for younger patients were double those of older patients in a CT radiation exposure study presented last week at the American Roentgen Ray Society 2010 annual meeting in San Diego, CA. Scientists say that the findings indicate that age is another factor that doctors should consider when ordering CT scans.

Younger Patients Face Double Radiation Risk from CT Scans: Study

May 14, 2010 Posted by | 2 WORLD, health | , , , | Leave a comment

Many doctors are poorly informed on radiation cancer risks

there is a distinct lack of information about medical radiation risks in the medical community

Cancer Panel Report Cites Medical Radiation Concerns,  News Inferno.com  May 12th, 2010 “…..the PCP pointed to the huge increase in Americans’ exposure to medical radiation. The panel called for increased regulations for technicians operating medical machines that emit radiation and recommended physician knowledge of these devices’ risks be enhanced……The PCP report pointed out that medical radiation exposure increased from 15 percent in the 1980s to a whopping 48 percent today,……Compounding matters, the PCP believes there is a distinct lack of information about medical radiation risks in the medical community, citing a recent survey that found most radiologists and emergency-room physicians (three-quarters) appreciably minimize CT scan radiation doses and about nine of ten emergency room doctors do know realize the scans are linked to an increased lifetime cancer risk,

Cancer Panel Report Cites Medical Radiation Concerns

May 13, 2010 Posted by | health, USA | , , , , , | Leave a comment

President’s Cancer Panel Report and environmental causes of breast cancer

our cancer institute has become very interested in environmental contributors to breast cancer.

the President’s Cancer Panel report is in general cautious and makes sensible policy recommendations. It also makes a number of (mostly) sensible recommendations for individual citizens. In general, it is cautious and highlights a neglected aspect of cancer research.

The President’s Cancer Panel steps into it : Respectful Insolence, 11 May 2010,“…….. the same time that mortality rates for childhood cancers have been plummeting dramatically, the incidence of childhood cancers has been steadily climbing. Continue reading →

May 11, 2010 Posted by | health, USA | , , , , | Leave a comment

Younger patients more at risk from radiation caused cancer

Radiation Risks Nearly Double for Younger CT Scan Patients, Doctors should consider age when evaluating risks, study suggests. Bloomberg Business Week,May 3 (HealthDay News) –– Radiation risks associated with abdominal and pelvic CT scans are twice as high for younger patients as older patients, a new study finds.”Estimating the risks associated with ionizing radiation is complex,” study author Dr. James Koonce, of the Medical University of South Carolina, said in a news release. “Many variables such as patient size, age, and the region of the body being imaged all affect the total risk. Our study looked at how the overall risks associated with abdominal/pelvic CT scans depend on patient sex and age.”

Radiation Risks Nearly Double for Younger CT Scan Patients

May 10, 2010 Posted by | health, USA | , , , , | Leave a comment

CT scans as a cause of cancer

Avoiding cancer, The Star, By Dr ALBERT LIM KOK HOOI, 9 May 2010, “..Radiation doses from common CT procedures are higher and more variable than previously thought…….In the first article, researchers found out that radiation doses from common CT procedures are higher (about 66%) and more variable than previously thought. Radiation is a known cause of cancer. In the second study, researchers estimated future cancer risk from current CT use in the United States and projected that 29,000 future cancers will be directly attributable to CT scans that were performed in 2007 alone. It is expected that the majority of these projected cancers will be caused by scans of the abdomen and pelvis (n = 14,000), chest (n = 4,100) and head (n = 4,000) and by CT angiography (n = 2,700)…….
The irony of it all is that 80% of our population are having their cancer diagnosed late and inadequately treated. The other 20% are overserviced whether by overtreatment or unnecessary CT scans. Avoiding cancer

May 10, 2010 Posted by | 2 WORLD, health | , , , , , | Leave a comment

Cancer from nuclear radiation: references in President’s Cancer Panel report

President’s Cancer Panel report, Frank Munger, 9 May 2010, Oak Ridge is mentioned at least three times in the President’s Cancer Panel report, “Reducing Environmental Cancer Risk — What We Can Do Now.” I haven’t had a chance to read the report yet but a couple of folks have sent me copies. When I return to the office (been gone for a few days) and get my mailbox unclogged, I’ll post it here. There are references to earlier studies of nuclear fallout and iodine-131 exposures, including those in Oak Ridge, and also higher rates of multiple myeloma among construction workers at nuclear weapons sites.

President’s Cancer Panel report | Frank Munger’s Atomic City Underground | knoxnews.com

May 10, 2010 Posted by | health, USA | , , , , , | Leave a comment

Cancer legacy for a uranium milling town

A town under siege from Cancer, – Salt Lake City, Utah Newsby: Brent Hunsaker MONTICELLO, Utah (ABC 4 News) 7 May 2010, – The Uranium mill was big for little Monticello. Still, not everyone worked there. So why would people who never set foot on mill property still get cancer? Continue reading →

May 8, 2010 Posted by | health, USA | , , , , , , | Leave a comment

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