A Review for the Epidemiological Study as A Health Monitoring of Potential Risk of Radiation Exposure near the Nuclear Power Plants in Japan

An apparent increase of leukemia risk raises occasionally public concern of radiation exposure in the developed countries where nuclear power plants (NPPs) are located although the facilities operate normally. On the contrary a reactor plant accident certainly poses a threat to increase thyroid cancer risk in children by radioiodine uptake mainly resulted from contaminated fresh milk due to the fallout. As the end of 1998, there were 52 NPPs operating in Japan. One of our important issues of radiation epidemiology is how to elucidate scientific, social, and political controversy about the potential public health risk of radiation exposure near NPPs if nuclear energy is necessary in Japanese society from now on. A review was conducted for the epidemiological study as a public health monitoring of potential risk of radiation exposure near the NPPs in Japan with respect to two points; routine releases of radioactive effluents from NPPs and consequence of a NPP accident.