Radon and other natural radionuclides in drinking water and risk of stomach cancer: A case-cohort study in Finland

Abstract

Very high concentrations of naturally occurring radionuclides are encountered in Finnish groundwaters and wells. Radon ingested through drinking water can cause considerable radiation to the stomach. We assessed the effect of natural uranium and other radionuclides in drinking water on the risk of stomach cancer. Subjects (n ‫؍‬ 144,627) in the base cohort had lived outside the municipal tap water system during 1967-1980. A subcohort of 4,590 subjects was formed for use as a reference group by random sampling of the base cohort, with stratification by age and sex. Within the subcohort, 371 subjects had used drinking water from drilled wells prior to 1981. Stomach cancer cases within the subcohort were identified through a cancer registry, and cases using water from drilled wells were selected. Activity concentrations of radon, radium-226 and natural uranium in the drinking water were analyzed using radiochemical and alpha spectrometric methods. The median activity concentration of radon in well water was 130 Bq/l for both the 88 stomach cancer cases and the 274 subjects in the subcohort. Median radium concentrations were 0.007 Bq/l for cases and 0.010 Bq/l for the subcohort, with a median uranium concentration of 0.07 Bq/l for both groups. Risk of stomach cancer was not associated with exposure to radon or other radionuclides. Key words: stomach cancer; radon; radium; uranium; radiation effects; water Although radiation is a well-established cause of cancer and its carcinogenic effects are known in considerable detail, epidemiologic studies have primarily dealt with high doses of external radiation. The most important contribution of natural radiation for most populations is from inhaled radon (generic term used commonly to refer to the isotope radon-222) progeny. High residential levels of radon increase the risk of lung cancer, but the effects of other types of internal exposure to natural radiation have remained largely unknown. 1 Everybody is exposed to natural radionuclides, including uranium, thorium decay chains and potassium-40. Radiation exposure results from intake through diet and drinking water as well as inhalation of radioactive gases, such as radon. Typically, internal exposure to natural radioisotopes other than radon is negligible (on average 140 Sv/year), but there are populations with substantially increased exposures to radionuclides from the uranium and thorium series, while variability in exposure to potassium-40 is much more limited. 2 Our study deals with radon, radium and uranium, which are the most important radionuclides contributing to natural radioactivity in water.Exposures to natural radionuclides through drinking water substantially exceeding normal levels occur in some circumstances. Due to granitoid bedrock and groundwater characteristics, concentrations of several natural radionuclides in groundwater in Finland are exceptionally high, and exposure through wells drilled in bedrock is frequently much higher than in other parts of the world. Among Finns, who use drinking water fro...

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