Radiation and Public Health Project
Encyclopedia
Radiation and Public Health Project is a nonprofit educational and scientific organization founded in 1985 by Jay M. Gould
, a statistician and epidemiologist, and Ernest Sternglass. The New York based group was established by scientists and physicians dedicated to understanding the relationships between low-level, nuclear radiation and public health, and questions the safety of nuclear power
. The project's main contributors are Jay M. Gould, Ph.D., the Founder, Director, and first President of RPHP; Dr. Ernest Sternglass, physicist and Professor Emeritus Radiation Physics of the University of Pittsburgh
; Joseph Mangano MPH, MBA, executive director of RPHP; Bill McDonnell MPA, Janette Sherman, MD Adjunct Professor of Environmental Studies at Western Michigan University
in Kalamazoo; and Dr. Jerry Brown, Founding Professor Florida International University
. Most of the members of the group have published both books and articles in peer-reviewed journals.
According to a 2003 article in The New York Times
, the group's work has been controversial, and had little credibility with the scientific establishment. Some scientists support the work, including Samuel Epstein
, professor of environmental and occupational medicine at the University of Illinois, who said in 2003 that the group was "producing solid scientific work that stands critical peer review."
As of November 2010, Radiation and Public Health Project members have published 27 medical journal articles on health risks from radioactive exposures to nuclear reactors and weapons tests. RPHP has conducted the only study of in body radiation near U.S. nuclear plants. It studied 5,000 baby teeth, the results of which were published in 5 medical journal articles. High and rising levels of strontium-90
in baby teeth were found near reactors. Other RPHP studies have found elevated rates of childhood, thyroid, and other cancers near reactors. The work of the Radiation and Public Health Project has been criticized by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in a statement citing only one other peer-reviewed publication besides those of the RPHP.
A set of 85,000 teeth that had been collected by Dr. Louise Reiss
and her colleagues as part of the Baby Tooth Survey
were uncovered in 2001 and given to the Radiation and Public health Project. By tracking the individuals who had participated in the tooth-collection project, the RHPR published results in a 2010 issue of the International Journal of Health Service that showed that those children who later died of cancer before the age of 50 had levels of strontium 90 in their stored baby teeth that was twice the level of those who were still alive at 50.
in the late 1980s. Sternglass's study found that leukemia
death rates in U.S. children near nuclear reactors rose sharply (vs. the national trend) in the past two decades. The greatest mortality increases occurred near the oldest nuclear plants, while declines were observed near plants that closed permanently in the 1980s and 1990s.
Several methodological problems in the study were found by the National Cancer Institute
, National Institutes of Health
, Nuclear Regulatory Commission
and nuclear industry groups. Among the errors were: small sample sizes used to draw far-reaching conclusions; no control populations; no other cancer risk factors considered; no environmental sampling and analysis; cherry-picking of data to fit the conclusion; and an incorrect half-life
used for strontium-90. As such, the results have not changed the opinion of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission that there is no excess cancer risk from living near nuclear facilities.
Jay M. Gould
Jay Martin Gould, who died in September 2005, was a statistician and epidemiologist who founded the Radiation and Public Health Project in 1985. It was Dr. Gould's contention that radiation from nuclear power plants was causing high rates of cancer in surrounding neighborhoods. For more than two...
, a statistician and epidemiologist, and Ernest Sternglass. The New York based group was established by scientists and physicians dedicated to understanding the relationships between low-level, nuclear radiation and public health, and questions the safety of nuclear power
Nuclear safety in the United States
Nuclear safety in the U.S. is governed by federal regulations and continues to be studied by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission . The safety of nuclear plants and materials controlled by the U.S...
. The project's main contributors are Jay M. Gould, Ph.D., the Founder, Director, and first President of RPHP; Dr. Ernest Sternglass, physicist and Professor Emeritus Radiation Physics of the University of Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
; Joseph Mangano MPH, MBA, executive director of RPHP; Bill McDonnell MPA, Janette Sherman, MD Adjunct Professor of Environmental Studies at Western Michigan University
Western Michigan University
Western Michigan University is a public university located in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. The university was established in 1903 by Dwight B. Waldo, and as of the Fall 2010 semester, its enrollment is 25,045....
in Kalamazoo; and Dr. Jerry Brown, Founding Professor Florida International University
Florida International University
Florida International University is an American public research university in metropolitan Miami, Florida, in the United States, with its main campus in University Park...
. Most of the members of the group have published both books and articles in peer-reviewed journals.
According to a 2003 article in The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, the group's work has been controversial, and had little credibility with the scientific establishment. Some scientists support the work, including Samuel Epstein
Samuel Epstein
Samuel S. Epstein is a medical doctor, and currently professor emeritus of environmental and occupational health at the University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health...
, professor of environmental and occupational medicine at the University of Illinois, who said in 2003 that the group was "producing solid scientific work that stands critical peer review."
As of November 2010, Radiation and Public Health Project members have published 27 medical journal articles on health risks from radioactive exposures to nuclear reactors and weapons tests. RPHP has conducted the only study of in body radiation near U.S. nuclear plants. It studied 5,000 baby teeth, the results of which were published in 5 medical journal articles. High and rising levels of strontium-90
Strontium-90
Strontium-90 is a radioactive isotope of strontium, with a half-life of 28.8 years.-Radioactivity:Natural strontium is nonradioactive and nontoxic, but 90Sr is a radioactivity hazard...
in baby teeth were found near reactors. Other RPHP studies have found elevated rates of childhood, thyroid, and other cancers near reactors. The work of the Radiation and Public Health Project has been criticized by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in a statement citing only one other peer-reviewed publication besides those of the RPHP.
A set of 85,000 teeth that had been collected by Dr. Louise Reiss
Louise Reiss
Louise Marie Zibold Reiss was an American physician who coordinated what became known as the Baby Tooth Survey, in which deciduous teeth from children living in the St. Louis, Missouri area who were born in the 1950s and 1960s were collected and analyzed over a period of 12 years...
and her colleagues as part of the Baby Tooth Survey
Baby Tooth Survey
The Baby Tooth Survey was initiated by the Greater St. Louis Citizens' Committee for Nuclear Information in conjunction with Saint Louis University and the Washington University School of Dental Medicine as a means of determining the effects of nuclear fallout in the human anatomy by examining the...
were uncovered in 2001 and given to the Radiation and Public health Project. By tracking the individuals who had participated in the tooth-collection project, the RHPR published results in a 2010 issue of the International Journal of Health Service that showed that those children who later died of cancer before the age of 50 had levels of strontium 90 in their stored baby teeth that was twice the level of those who were still alive at 50.
Leukemia study
This study was published in a 2009 issue of the European Journal of Cancer Care. It disputes a large scale analysis conducted by the National Cancer InstituteNational Cancer Institute
The National Cancer Institute is part of the National Institutes of Health , which is one of 11 agencies that are part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The NCI coordinates the U.S...
in the late 1980s. Sternglass's study found that leukemia
Leukemia
Leukemia or leukaemia is a type of cancer of the blood or bone marrow characterized by an abnormal increase of immature white blood cells called "blasts". Leukemia is a broad term covering a spectrum of diseases...
death rates in U.S. children near nuclear reactors rose sharply (vs. the national trend) in the past two decades. The greatest mortality increases occurred near the oldest nuclear plants, while declines were observed near plants that closed permanently in the 1980s and 1990s.
Several methodological problems in the study were found by the National Cancer Institute
National Cancer Institute
The National Cancer Institute is part of the National Institutes of Health , which is one of 11 agencies that are part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The NCI coordinates the U.S...
, National Institutes of Health
National Institutes of Health
The National Institutes of Health are an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and are the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and health-related research. Its science and engineering counterpart is the National Science Foundation...
, Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Nuclear Regulatory Commission
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is an independent agency of the United States government that was established by the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974 from the United States Atomic Energy Commission, and was first opened January 19, 1975...
and nuclear industry groups. Among the errors were: small sample sizes used to draw far-reaching conclusions; no control populations; no other cancer risk factors considered; no environmental sampling and analysis; cherry-picking of data to fit the conclusion; and an incorrect half-life
Half-life
Half-life, abbreviated t½, is the period of time it takes for the amount of a substance undergoing decay to decrease by half. The name was originally used to describe a characteristic of unstable atoms , but it may apply to any quantity which follows a set-rate decay.The original term, dating to...
used for strontium-90. As such, the results have not changed the opinion of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission that there is no excess cancer risk from living near nuclear facilities.
See also
- Three Mile Island accidentThree Mile Island accidentThe Three Mile Island accident was a core meltdown in Unit 2 of the Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania near Harrisburg, United States in 1979....
- Index of radiation articles
- Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station
- John GofmanJohn GofmanJohn William Gofman was an American scientist and advocate. He was Professor Emeritus of Molecular and Cell Biology at University of California at Berkeley. Some of his early work was on the Manhattan Project, and he shares patents on the fissionability of uranium-233 as well as on early processes...
- List of civilian nuclear accidents
- Nuclear accidents in the United StatesNuclear accidents in the United StatesAccording to a 2010 survey of energy accidents, there have been at least 56 accidents near nuclear reactors in the United States . The most serious of these was the Three Mile Island accident in 1979...