BMJ  2005;330 (29 January), doi:10.1136/bmj.330.7485.0-b

Domestic radon increases the risk of lung cancer

Home exposure to the products of naturally occurring radon is associated with a higher risk of lung cancer, especially in smokers and recent ex-smokers. Darby and colleagues (p 223) performed a meta-analysis of 13 case-control studies that included 7148 cases of lung cancer. The risk of lung cancer increased 16% per 100 Bq/m³ increase in the concentration of radon in household air, with a linear dose-response relation and no obvious threshold. Domestic radon may be responsible for 9% of deaths from lung cancer and 2% of deaths from cancer in Europe.

CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    StumbleUpon    Technorati    What's this?

Relevant Article

Radon in homes and risk of lung cancer: collaborative analysis of individual data from 13 European case-control studies

S Darby, D Hill, A Auvinen, J M Barros-Dios, H Baysson, F Bochicchio, H Deo, R Falk, F Forastiere, M Hakama, I Heid, L Kreienbrock, M Kreuzer, F Lagarde, I Mäkeläinen, C Muirhead, W Oberaigner, G Pershagen, A Ruano-Ravina, E Ruosteenoja, A Schaffrath Rosario, M Tirmarche, L Tomásek, E Whitley, H-E Wichmann, and R Doll
BMJ 2005 330: 223. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Online poll

Find out more>>