BMJ  2006;333:971 (4 November), doi:10.1136/bmj.333.7575.971-b

Letter

Health in the Middle East

No strong link between depleted uranium and cancer

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

EDITOR—In the editorial on lessons in tackling chronic disease in the Middle East Nishtar mentions the increased incidence of cancer from exposure to depleted uranium.¹ This is often a controversial and emotive subject. The reference cited in the editorial¹ is a cohort study that did not find an excess risk of cancer associated with exposure to depleted uranium and included adjustments for confounding lifestyle factors such as alcohol and smoking.² The majority evidence and expert opinion on the lack of a clear association between depleted uranium and cancer are quite consistent, although a possible case for lung cancer has been suggested.³ Another editorial on the public health effects of depleted uranium⁴ and the two part report of the Royal Society Working Group both consistently uphold this view.³

The highest levels of exposure are on the battlefield and probably incur an added risk of lung cancer death of 1 . . . [Full text of this article]

Heart Hospital, UCLH NHS Foundation Trust, London W1G 8PH amit.patel@doctors.org.uk

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