Risk of thyroid cancer after the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident. 2013

Shunichi Yamashita, and Shinichi Suzuki
Department of Radiation Medical Sciences, Atomic Bomb Disease Institute, Nagasaki University, 1-12-4 Sakamoto, Nagasaki 8528523, Japan. shun@nagasaki-u.ac.jp

The appropriateness of the initial response and countermeasures taken following the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident after the Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11, 2011 should be further examined. Implementation of a prospective epidemiological study on human health risks from low-dose radiation exposure and comprehensive health protection from radiation should be emphasized on a basis of the lessons learnt from the Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident. In contrast, the doses to a vast majority of the population in Fukushima were not high enough to expect to see any increase in incidence of cancer and health effects in the future, however, public concerns about the long-term health effects of radioactive environmental contamination have increased in Japan. Since May 2011, the Fukushima Prefecture started the Fukushima Health Management Survey Project with the purpose of long-term health care administration and early medical diagnosis/treatment for prefectural residents. In this report, risk and countermeasures of thyroid cancer occurrence after nuclear accidents, especially due to early exposure of radioactive iodine, will be focused upon to understand the current situation of risk of thyroid cancer in Fukushima, and the difficult challenges surrounding accurate estimations of low-dose and low-dose rate radiation exposures will be discussed.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D007457 Iodine Radioisotopes Unstable isotopes of iodine that decay or disintegrate emitting radiation. I atoms with atomic weights 117-139, except I 127, are radioactive iodine isotopes. Radioisotopes, Iodine
D011829 Radiation Dosage The amount of radiation energy that is deposited in a unit mass of material, such as tissues of plants or animal. In RADIOTHERAPY, radiation dosage is expressed in gray units (Gy). In RADIOLOGIC HEALTH, the dosage is expressed by the product of absorbed dose (Gy) and quality factor (a function of linear energy transfer), and is called radiation dose equivalent in sievert units (Sv). Sievert Units,Dosage, Radiation,Gray Units,Gy Radiation,Sv Radiation Dose Equivalent,Dosages, Radiation,Radiation Dosages,Units, Gray,Units, Sievert
D011848 Radioactive Pollutants Radioactive substances which act as pollutants. They include chemicals whose radiation is released via radioactive waste, nuclear accidents, fallout from nuclear explosions, and the like. Pollutants, Radioactive
D005507 Food Contamination, Radioactive Exposure of FOOD to radioactive substances, distinguishable from FOOD IRRADIATION, a food preservation technique. Contamination, Radioactive Food,Radioactive Food Contamination
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D012306 Risk The probability that an event will occur. It encompasses a variety of measures of the probability of a generally unfavorable outcome. Relative Risk,Relative Risks,Risk, Relative,Risks,Risks, Relative
D013964 Thyroid Neoplasms Tumors or cancer of the THYROID GLAND. Cancer of Thyroid,Thyroid Cancer,Cancer of the Thyroid,Neoplasms, Thyroid,Thyroid Adenoma,Thyroid Carcinoma,Adenoma, Thyroid,Adenomas, Thyroid,Cancer, Thyroid,Cancers, Thyroid,Carcinoma, Thyroid,Carcinomas, Thyroid,Neoplasm, Thyroid,Thyroid Adenomas,Thyroid Cancers,Thyroid Carcinomas,Thyroid Neoplasm
D014463 Ultrasonography The visualization of deep structures of the body by recording the reflections or echoes of ultrasonic pulses directed into the tissues. Use of ultrasound for imaging or diagnostic purposes employs frequencies ranging from 1.6 to 10 megahertz. Echography,Echotomography,Echotomography, Computer,Sonography, Medical,Tomography, Ultrasonic,Ultrasonic Diagnosis,Ultrasonic Imaging,Ultrasonographic Imaging,Computer Echotomography,Diagnosis, Ultrasonic,Diagnostic Ultrasound,Ultrasonic Tomography,Ultrasound Imaging,Diagnoses, Ultrasonic,Diagnostic Ultrasounds,Imaging, Ultrasonic,Imaging, Ultrasonographic,Imaging, Ultrasound,Imagings, Ultrasonographic,Imagings, Ultrasound,Medical Sonography,Ultrasonic Diagnoses,Ultrasonographic Imagings,Ultrasound, Diagnostic,Ultrasounds, Diagnostic
D047852 Chernobyl Nuclear Accident April 25th -26th, 1986 nuclear power accident that occurred at Chernobyl in the former USSR (Ukraine) located 80 miles north of Kiev. Chornobyl Nuclear Accident,Chernobyl Nuclear Accident, Chornobyl, Ukraine, 1986,Chornobyl Nuclear Disaster,Accident, Chernobyl Nuclear,Accident, Chornobyl Nuclear,Accidents, Chernobyl Nuclear,Accidents, Chornobyl Nuclear,Chernobyl Nuclear Accidents,Chornobyl Nuclear Accidents,Chornobyl Nuclear Disasters,Disaster, Chornobyl Nuclear,Disasters, Chornobyl Nuclear,Nuclear Accident, Chernobyl,Nuclear Accident, Chornobyl,Nuclear Accidents, Chernobyl,Nuclear Accidents, Chornobyl,Nuclear Disaster, Chornobyl,Nuclear Disasters, Chornobyl
D062406 Fukushima Nuclear Accident Nuclear power accident that occurred following the Tohoku-Kanto earthquake of March 11, 2011 in the northern region of Japan. Fukushima Nuclear Accident, Japan,Fukushima Nuclear Disaster,Accidents, Fukushima Nuclear,Disaster, Fukushima Nuclear,Disasters, Fukushima Nuclear,Fukushima Nuclear Accidents,Fukushima Nuclear Disasters,Nuclear Accident, Fukushima,Nuclear Accidents, Fukushima,Nuclear Disaster, Fukushima,Nuclear Disasters, Fukushima

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