Irish radiation specialists are studying new research that shows 9 per cent of lung cancer deaths across Europe are caused by radioactive radon gas.
Safety limits currently applied here may have to be revised downwards in light of the study, according to the chief executive of the Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland.
The study was published yesterday in the British Medical Journal. It provided a collaborative analysis of 13 European studies carried out in nine countries. The Republic did not include a study as there was no case-control data available, according to Dr Ann McGarry of the RPII.
In the largest study of its kind, the British-based researchers analysed 7,148 cases of lung cancer, comparing them to 14,208 controls. They examined radon levels in the present and past homes of all the participants and also obtained detailed smoking histories, including the effects of second-hand smoke on lifelong non-smokers.
"The smoking details are particularly important," Dr McGarry said. "The [ radon] risk for smokers is much greater than for non-smokers." Smokers faced a 25-fold higher risk from radon exposure than non- smokers, she said.
The study found radon accounted for 20,000 lung cancer deaths in Europe each year, about 9 per cent of the total. The higher the radon levels, the greater the risk.
The Irish lung cancer death toll is about 1,500 a year, according to the Irish Cancer Society. The RPII has warned for years that about 10 per cent of this total could be caused by radon exposure.
Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas which seeps from the ground. It can accumulate in homes, causing excess radiation exposure to those breathing in the gas.
The RPII currently applies the EU recommended radon limit of 200 Becquerels (Bq) but this may have to be reviewed, Dr McGarry said.
