30 Years Living with Chernobyl 5 Years Living with Fukushima
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IPPNW International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War ippnw/psr report 30 years living with Chernobyl 5 years living with Fukushima Health effects of the nuclear disasters in Chernobyl and Fukushima Imprint Report: The health effects of the nuclear disasters in Fukushima and Chernobyl 30 years living with Chernobyl, 5 years living with Fukushima Published April 2016 Team of authors Dr Angelika Claußen, IPPNW Dr Alex Rosen, IPPNW In cooperation with Henrik Paulitz, IPPNW (chapter 4) Advisors Dr Sebastian Pflugbeil, Society for Radiation Protection Prof Dr Inge Schmitz-Feuerhake, Society for Radiation Protection Published by IPPNW Germany, Körtestraße 10, 10967 Berlin, Germany, +49.30.698.0740, [email protected], Web: www.ippnw.de, www.fukushima-disaster.de Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR), 14th St, NW, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20005, USA, +1.202.667, [email protected], www.psr.org PSR/IPPNW Switzerland, Bireggstrasse 36, Postfach 3563, CH-6002 Lucerne, Switzerland +41 41 240 63 49, [email protected], www.ippnw.ch/ IPPNW Austria (OMEGA), Schulgasse 40/17, 1180 Wien, Austria, +43 2988 6236, [email protected], www.ippnw.at Coordination and final editing Margaret Beavis, Xanthe Hall, IPPNW Catherine Thomasson, MD, PSR Yuri Hiranuma, DO, PSR Layout Boris Buchholz, AGD John Rachow, MD 30 years living with Chernobyl 5 years living with Fukushima Health effects of the nuclear disasters in Chernobyl and Fukushima A Report by IPPNW Germany Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR) PSR/IPPNW Switzerland IPPNW Austria (OMEGA) CHERNOBYL AND FUKUSHIMA CONSEQUENCES Abbreviations ......................................................................................................................9 Introduction...................................................................................................................... 11 PART A: 30 years living with Chernobyl Summary of the health effects of the nuclear disaster 1 Summary of the effects of Chernobyl ............................................................................. 14 1.1 Increased cancer risk ................................................................................................................................. 14 1.2 Non-cancerous conditions .......................................................................................................................... 15 1.3 Genetic and teratogenic effects ................................................................................................................... 15 1.4 Health of liquidators .................................................................................................................................... 16 2 Sequence of events leading to the accident .................................................................... 17 3 Basic facts of the catastrophe ...................................................................................... 19 4 Assessment of the health effects of the Chernobyl meltdown ............................................ 23 5 Effects on the health of liquidators ................................................................................ 28 5.1 Mortality among liquidators ......................................................................................................................... 28 5.2 Cancerous diseases .................................................................................................................................... 29 5.3 Non-cancerous diseases ............................................................................................................................. 29 5.3.1 Cardiovascular diseases ....................................................................................................................................... 29 5.3.2 Eye diseases ........................................................................................................................................................ 30 5.3.3 Mental illnesses ................................................................................................................................................... 30 5.3.4 Premature aging ...................................................................................................................................................31 5.4 Genetic changes in the children of liquidators ................................................................................................. 32 5 IPPNW / PSR REPORT 6 Effects on the health of the contaminated population ...................................................... 34 6.1 Increased cancer incidence.........................................................................................................................34 6.1.1 Thyroid cancer in the Chernobyl area ................................................................................................................... 34 6.1.2 Other types of cancer in the Chernobyl area ..........................................................................................................37 6.1.3 Cancer incidence in other European countries ...................................................................................................... 39 6.2 Non-cancerous diseases ............................................................................................................................. 41 6.2.1 Disorders of the haematopoietic organs and the lymphatic system ....................................................................... 42 6.2.2 Cardiovascular diseases ....................................................................................................................................... 43 6.2.3 Benign thyroid diseases ....................................................................................................................................... 43 6.2.4 Diabetes .............................................................................................................................................................. 44 6.2.5 Pulmonary diseases ............................................................................................................................................. 44 6.2.6 Brain damage / mental illnesses ........................................................................................................................... 45 7 Genetic and teratogenic effects ..................................................................................... 46 7.1 Congenital Malformations in the Chernobyl area ...........................................................................................46 7.2 Congenital Malformations across Europe ...................................................................................................... 47 7.3 Down syndrome in Germany and Europe ..................................................................................................... 49 7.4 Stillbirths and increased perinatal mortality in the former GDR .....................................................................50 7.5 Stillbirths and increased perinatal mortality across Europe ............................................................................50 7.6 Gender ratio shift ........................................................................................................................................ 51 7.7 Chromosome aberrations ............................................................................................................................ 51 6 CHERNOBYL AND FUKUSHIMA CONSEQUENCES PART B 5 years living with Fukushima Summary of the health’s effects of the nuclear disaster Introduction ............................................................................................................... 58 1 The beginning of the nuclear disaster ............................................................................ 59 2 Radioactive emissions and contamination ....................................................................... 61 2.1 Atmospheric emissions ...............................................................................................................................63 2.2 Discharge into the Pacific Ocean .................................................................................................................64 2.3 Radioactive contamination of food products .................................................................................................66 3 Consequences of the nuclear disaster for human health ................................................... 70 3.1 Health effects on employees, rescue- and clean-up workers ........................................................................ 71 3.2 Health effects on the general public............................................................................................................. 72 4 Mass thyroid screening in Fukushima Prefecture ............................................................ 74 4.1 Preliminary baseline screening .................................................................................................................... 75 4.2 Full-scale screening .................................................................................................................................... 75 4.3 Prognoses .................................................................................................................................................. 76 5 Consequences of the nuclear disaster for the ecosystem .................................................