Geographical Correlations between Indoor Radon Concentration and Risks of Lung Cancer, Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, and Leukemia during 1999–2008 in Korea
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Indoor Radon Concentration
2.2. Incidences of Lung Cancer, NHL, and Leukemia
2.3. Confounding Factors
2.4. Bayesian Hierarchical Modeling for Radon Exposure and Cancers
3. Results
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
Acknowledgments
Author Contributions
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Site (No. of Measurement Point) | Device | Comments | Annual Radon Concentration (Bq/m3) | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Arithmetic Mean | Geometric Mean | Max. | |||
1st Survey (1989) | |||||
Dwellings (530) | RadTrack | - indoor measurements only during the winter | 103.9 | 92.2 | 496 |
2nd Survey (1999–2000) | |||||
Dwellings for three months (2953) | RadTrak | - calculation of annual average indoor concentration - distribution by season, house type, building age - focused on urban areas | 52.5 | 42.1 | 1350 |
3rd Survey (2002–2005) | |||||
Dwellings for three months (Rn 970, Tn 450) | RadTrak, Radpot, thoron progeny monitor | - indoor Rn distribution map - distribution by season, house type, building age - more rural areas | 66.3 | 55.7 | 1186 |
4th Survey (2008–2009) | |||||
Public buildings (1100) | Raduet | - 63% schools, 36.3% local governmental offices - measured on the first floor of the buildings | 79.3 | 60.5 | 1004 |
Total (5553) | 62.1 | 49.0 | 1350 |
Characteristics of the 234 Regions | Mean | Min. | Max. |
---|---|---|---|
Population (no. 2009) a | 172,857 | 10,325 | 1,073,149 |
Male | 88,090.5 | 5393 | 539,655 |
Female | 85,348.5 | 4935 | 533,494 |
Median age (years, 2009) a | 42.8 | 32.8 | 59.2 |
Male | 40.8 | 31.5 | 56.1 |
Female | 44.8 | 33.1 | 62.6 |
Aggregated indoor radon concentration (Bq/m3) | 57 | 24 | 231 |
Deprivation index (z-score, 2005) | 0.06 | −7.82 | 7.28 |
Smoking rate (%, 2009) b | 26.7 | 16.4 | 33.4 |
Male | 50.4 | 31.9 | 62.4 |
Female | 6.0 | 0.4 | 12.5 |
Age-standardized incidence ratio c | |||
Lung cancer | |||
Male (no. of cases) e | 1.05 (494) | 0.51 (26) | 1.53 (1617) |
Female (no. of cases) e | 1.00 (185) | 0.48 (11) | 1.42 (736) |
Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, all | |||
Male (no. of cases) e | 1.01 (55) | 0.44 (3) | 1.70 (256) |
Female (no. of cases) e | 0.99 (43) | 0.46 (3) | 2.00 (211) |
Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, children and adolescents d | |||
Male (no. of cases) e | 1.00 (12) | 0.00 (0) | 3.93 (69) |
Female (no. of cases) e | 0.98 (9) | 0.00 (0) | 3.42 (51) |
Leukemia, all | |||
Male (no. of cases) e | 0.98 (68) | 0.46 (4) | 1.48 (283) |
Female (no. of cases) e | 0.98 (50) | 0.32 (0) | 1.65 (232) |
Leukemia, children and adolescents d | |||
Male (no. of cases) e | 0.94 (4) | 0.00 (0) | 4.99 (25) |
Female (no. of cases) e | 0.99 (2) | 0.00 (0) | 6.13 (14) |
Per 10 Bq/m3 Increase in Radon Concentration | Crude | Adjusted a | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cancer Type | Relative Risk | 95% Credible Intervals | Relative Risk | 95% Credible Intervals | |
Male | Lung cancer | 1.03 | (1.02, 1.05) | 1.01 | (1.00, 1.02) |
NHL, all | 1.01 | (0.99, 1.03) | 1.00 | (0.98, 1.02) | |
NHL in children and adolescents b | 0.98 | (0.94, 1.02) | 0.97 | (0.93, 1.02) | |
Leukemia, all | 0.98 | (0.96, 1.00) | 0.98 | (0.96, 1.00) | |
Leukemia in children and adolescents b | 0.96 | (0.89, 1.03) | 1.00 | (0.92, 1.08) | |
Female | Lung cancer | 1.01 | (0.99, 1.02) | 1.01 | (0.99, 1.02) |
NHL, all | 1.03 | (1.01, 1.06) | 1.04 | (1.02, 1.07) | |
NHL in children and adolescents b | 1.04 | (0.99, 1.10) | 1.07 | (1.01, 1.13) | |
Leukemia, all | 0.98 | (0.96, 1.01) | 0.98 | (0.95, 1.00) | |
Leukemia in children and adolescents b | 1.00 | (0.91, 1.10) | 0.98 | (0.88, 1.08) |
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Ha, M.; Hwang, S.-s.; Kang, S.; Park, N.-W.; Chang, B.-U.; Kim, Y. Geographical Correlations between Indoor Radon Concentration and Risks of Lung Cancer, Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, and Leukemia during 1999–2008 in Korea. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2017, 14, 344. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph14040344
Ha M, Hwang S-s, Kang S, Park N-W, Chang B-U, Kim Y. Geographical Correlations between Indoor Radon Concentration and Risks of Lung Cancer, Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, and Leukemia during 1999–2008 in Korea. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2017; 14(4):344. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph14040344
Chicago/Turabian StyleHa, Mina, Seung-sik Hwang, Sungchan Kang, No-Wook Park, Byung-Uck Chang, and Yongjae Kim. 2017. "Geographical Correlations between Indoor Radon Concentration and Risks of Lung Cancer, Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, and Leukemia during 1999–2008 in Korea" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 14, no. 4: 344. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph14040344