Cơ quan Bảo vệ Môi trường Hoa Kỳ (EPA) xem xét radon trong nhà là một trong những nguyên nhân quan trọng nhất của ung thư trong US1 Cơ quan này ước tính có khoảng ca tử vong do ung thư phổi hàng năm được gây ra do tiếp xúc với radon trong hút thuốc lá Chỉ (chịu trách nhiệm về khoảng ca tử vong do ung thư phổi hàng năm) gây ra tử vong do ung thư phổi hơn. Nếu EPA là đúng, nguy cơ tiếp xúc với radon đến nay có thể vượt quá nguy. | 8 Radiation from the Gods The . Environmental Protection Agency EPA considers indoor radon to be one of the most important causes of cancer in the The agency estimates that about 20 000 lung cancer deaths annually are caused by radon exposure in Only cigarette smoking responsible for about 150 000 lung cancer deaths annually causes more lung cancer deaths. If the EPA is right the risk of radon exposure could far exceed hazards associated with typical pollutants in outdoor air drinking water and certain foods and would approximate hazards of some more common activities such as automobile Because the entire . population is exposed radon gas would account for more deaths than almost any other agent the EPA regulates. Lung cancer and domestic radon exposure provide a clear example of many of the themes and issues discussed in this book. Federal and state governments have aggressively promoted indoor radon as a serious public health hazard because radon is a major contributor to radiation dose and we have the technological capabilities to do something about high radon levels in houses and buildings. Much of the debate on the public health consequences of radiation exposure centers on the question of uncertainty in risks at small radon levels. Because of the limited data that shows significant risks from epidemiological studies of indoor radon linear no-threshold theory LNT is used to predict risks based on observations made in the occupational mining environment where radon levels are thousands of times higher. Communicating radon risks has proven to be a challenging exercise because of the significant public apathy toward radon remediation. Using comparisons of lung cancer deaths from radon and cigarette smoking has proven to be a less than satisfactory communication strategy in part because smoking and radon exposure are unrelated activities. Public health impacts of radon exposure in homes are not clearly established because risks are .
