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Sunday, September 7, 2014

News item in Sunday Times (Sept. 7, 2014): Cancer behind 70% deaths in India’s atomic energy hubs

The change in the cell's genetic material may occur spontaneously or be brought on by an agent that causes cancer (a carcinogen). There are hundreds of reasons such as pollution, family history, cigarette smoking, intake of alcohol, exhausts from vehicles, etc for initiation of mutation in the body. As compared to these, radiation is a weak carcinogen.
It is a well-known fact that aging is associated with a number of events at the molecular, cellular and physiologic levels in our body that influence carcinogenesis and subsequent cancer growth. It is also well documented that the incidence of malignant tumors increases progressively with age, in both animals and humans.
A clearer understanding of these events will help in predicting and scientifically explaining the incidences of cancer.
The radiation doses received by workers in most of the facilities are in the range of natural background radiation dose to which all human being are exposed. The increase, if at all true, may not be related to the small radiation doses received by the workers and the members of the public living near nuclear facilities. It is reported that majority of deaths of persons in DAE centres are caused from cancer. If this is true, department should investigate the reasons other than radiation exposure for such a trend.