A meta-analysis leukaemia risk from low-dose gamma radiation

A meta-analysis of leukaemia risk from protracted exposure to low-dose gamma radiation

Occup Environ Med

2011;68:457e464. doi:10.1136/oem.2009.054684
Each year millions of people incur low doses of protracted ionising radiation as a condition of either employment or medical treatment.

It is unclear whether cancer risks estimated in this population reflect actual risks given that current models are based principally on the acutely exposed cohort of Japanese atomic bomb survivors.

A meta-analysis was conducted to synthesise existing information in 23 studies of leukaemia risk from protracted ionising radiation exposure.

Although information on leukaemia risks varied, a synthesis of this information revealed a significant association between leukaemia (excluding CLL) and protracted exposure to low-dose ionising radiation.

Occupational and environmental studies of lowdose ionising radiation exposure may individually lack the precision necessary for risk estimation; however, information from metaanalysis of these studies may be useful in elucidating risks and ultimately play an important role in the development of future protection standards.