Leukemia in Utah and radioactive fallout from the Nevada test site: a case-control study
Article Abstract:
The US Atomic Energy Commission carried out over 100 aboveground tests of nuclear weapons at its Nevada test site, which led to the deposition of radioactive fallout in sections of Utah and Nevada. Studies that have associated the fallout with higher leukemia rates in the affected counties have reported very different effects, ranging between a 1.5-fold increase and a 5.3-fold increase in leukemia. However, these reports estimated the amount of exposure based on the county of residence at the time of death, rather than on where the person lived when exposure was greatest. To improve accuracy, radiation doses received by people who had died with or of leukemia (for chronic lymphocytic leukemia, the patient must have died of the disease) in Utah were calculated based on residence information obtained from the church registry of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, an organization that keeps a file of deceased members. Other residence and age criteria were established. Radiation doses were calculated for people who met these criteria (1,177 cases) and age- and sex-matched controls (5,330 people who met the residence criteria, but who died of causes other than leukemia). Dosages were calculated according to the average total dose to bone marrow received during the period of fallout, and regional differences within Utah are reported. While weak associations between the dose to bone marrow and leukemia at all ages and all times after exposure were found, they were not statistically significant. However, a positive association was found for people who died before reaching the age of 20 years and between 1952 to 1957. No association was found for people who had been in utero at the time of maximal exposure. An evaluation of alternative explanations to radiation to account for the results is presented. In summary, and with the consideration of findings from other studies, it is possible that the excess rate of acute leukemia in southwestern Utah is due to fallout. However, the number of such cases is small. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)
Publication Name: JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0098-7484
Year: 1990
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Hip fractures and fluoridation in Utah's elderly population
Article Abstract:
Artificial water fluoridation at 1 ppm can increase the risk of hip fracture in those over 65 years of age. The incidence of hip fractures in three communities in Utah was studied for seven years. One community fluoridated its drinking water, but the others did not. The incidence of hip fracture was higher in both men and women in the community with fluoridated water compared to the other communities. The hip fracture rate was much higher in women under age 79 who drank fluoridated water than in those over age 80 years of age, perhaps because these women drank fluoridated water during menopause, a time of bone remodeling. The percentage of people who had ever smoked or drunk alcoholic beverages was small. Those in the study had been drinking fluoridated water for approximately 20 years.
Publication Name: JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0098-7484
Year: 1992
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Lung cancer etiology: Independent and joint effects of genetics, tobacco, and arsenic
Article Abstract:
Lung cancer is mainly caused by tobacco smoking, an exposure that is largely preventable, irrespective of the roles of familial aggregation and environmental exposures to arsenic or other carcinogens. It is suggested that avoiding tobacco smoking remains the best option for reducing lung cancer risk, even for individuals with such a familial risk, or for those who are already chronically exposed to arsenic or other lung carcinogens.
Publication Name: JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0098-7484
Year: 2004
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