TY - JOUR
AR - COR-2020-8-120
TI - Change of Age Distribution of Childhood and Adolescent Thyroid Cancer after the Fukushima Nuclear Accident Compared with the Chernobyl Cases
AU - Toshiko, Kato
JO - Clinical Oncology and Research
PY - 2020
DA - Wed 19, Aug 2020
SN - 2613-4942
DO - http://dx.doi.org/10.31487/j.COR.2020.08.20
UR - https://www.sciencerepository.org/change-of-age-distribution-of-childhood-and-adolescent-thyroid-cancer_COR-2020-8-120 
KW - Thyroid cancer, children and adolescents, age pattern, Fukushima nuclear accident, Chernobyl, Belarus, Ukraine, Russia, radiation exposure 
AB - Background and Methods: Comparison of age patterns of childhood and adolescent childhood thyroid
cancer after the nuclear accidents in Fukushima and Chernobyl is often used as a criterion of radiationinduced thyroid cancer in Fukushima. The Fukushima Health Management Survey reports that thyroid
cancers in Fukushima are unlikely to be radiation-induced, and one reason for the conclusion was no case
was found in the age of 0-5 years at exposure. Published data on the health effects of the Chernobyl accident
were analysed to assess whether there was one age pattern common in Chernobyl to be used as a criterion
of radiation-induced thyroid cancer. Various age distributions of thyroid cancer as to the age at exposure
and age at diagnosis, which depend on the country and the extent of radiation contamination, were studied
as a function of years after exposure.
Results and Conclusion: The highest incidence of thyroid cancer for infants aged 0-4 at exposure was
observed only in Belarus. The high incidence of age group 0-4 AE became apparent only after 12 years
from the accident in Ukraine and Russia. Age distribution of diagnosed or suspected thyroid cancer cases
in Fukushima by age at exposure shifts to younger age side, average age from 14.9 to 8.3 years in 9 years
after the accident. This trend agrees with the one in Ukraine and Russia. Because there is no common age
pattern in Chernobyl, we should better not use age pattern as a simple criterion of radiation-induced thyroid
cancer.