Table 1

A selection of epidemiological studies on populations of women exposed to radiation from the atomic bombings or for medical purposes

No. of women

No. of breast cancers

Cohort

Exposed

Non-exposed

Exposed

Non- exposed

Breast dose (Sv)^b

Exposure age (years)^b

ERR at 1 Sv^g

Atomic bombings

Life Span Study, Japan [43]

70,165

c

1059

-

0.28

27

1.74

Diagnostic radiation

Tuberculosis fluoroscopy, Canada [27]^a

31,917

c

319

332

0.89

26

0.90

Tuberculosis fluoroscopy, USA [28]

2573

2367

147

87

0.79

26

0.40

Scoliosis, USA [29]^a

4929

644

70

7

0.11

10

5.4

Radiotherapy for benign disorders

Enlarged thymus, USA [30]

1201

2469

22

12

0.69

<1

2.39

Skin hemangioma, Sweden [31]

17,202

c

245

-

0.29

0.5

0.35

Tinea Capitis, Israel [32]

5400

8100

25

27

0.02

7

-

Benign breast disease, Sweden [33]

1216

1874

198

101

5.8

40

0.35

Post-partum mastitis, USA [34]

601

1239

56

59

3.8

28

0.43

No. of cancer survivors

Observed

Expected

RR/OE

Cancer survivors

Pediatric HL (age < 16) LESG, USA [35]^d

480

29

0.7

f

11.7

55.5

Childhood cancer, CCSS, USA [36]^d

6304

60

3.7

f

7.8

24.7^h

Pediatric HL international [37]

2737

52

3.7

f

16

14.1

HL, UK [38]^d

2085

19

13.5

f

-

2.5^h

Breast cancer, Denmark [39]^e

56,540

529^e

-

2.5

51

1.04

Breast cancer, USA [40]^e

41,109

655^e

-

2.8

52

1.33

CCSS, Childhood Cancer Survivor Study; ERR, excess relative risk; expected, expected number of cases; HL, Hodgkin lymphoma; LESG, Late Effects Study Group; observed, observed number of cases; OE, observed/expected ratio; RR, relative risk. ^aOutcome breast cancer mortality. ^bAverage. ^cIncluded in the exposed group. ^dIn the total cohorts 70–90% of patients were treated with radiotherapy. ^eNested case-control studies among patients with a first breast cancer and matched controls. ^fSpecific dose estimates were not reported in these studies, but HL patients can be exposed to doses of 40 Gy or more [41]. ^gSource: UNSCEAR 2000 report [26], which also has more detailed descriptions of the individual studies. ^hFor the subgroup of patients treated with chest radiotherapy.

Ronckers et al. Breast Cancer Res 2005 7:21   doi:10.1186/bcr970