Uranium and other natural radionuclides in drinking water and risk of leukemia: a case-cohort study in Finland.
OBJECTIVE
We assessed the effect of natural uranium and other radionuclides in drinking water on risk of leukemia.


METHODS
The subjects (n = 144,627) in the base cohort had lived outside the municipal tapwater system during 1967-1980. A subcohort was formed as a stratified random sample of the base cohort and subjects using drinking water from drilled wells prior to 1981 were identified. A case-cohort design was used comparing exposure among cases with leukemia (n = 35) with a stratified random sample (n = 274) from the subcohort. Activity concentrations of uranium, radium-226, and radon in the drinking water were analyzed using radiochemical and alpha-spectrometric methods.


RESULTS
The median activity concentration of uranium in well water was 0.08 Bq/L for the leukemia cases and 0.06 Bq/L for the reference group, radon concentrations 80 and 130 Bq/L, respectively, and radium-226 concentrations 0.01 Bq/L for both groups. The hazard ratio of leukemia for uranium was 0.91 (95% confidence interval 0.73-1.13) per Bq/L. for radon 0.79 per Bq/L (95% CI 0.27-2.29), and for radium-226 0.80 (95% CI 0.46-1.39) per Bq/L.


CONCLUSIONS
Our results do not indicate an increased risk of leukemia from ingestion of natural uranium or other radionuclides through drinking water at these exposure levels.
Auvinen
Anssi
A
STUK--Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority, Research and Environmental Surveillance, Helsinki, Finland. anssi.auvinen@uta.fi
Kurttio
Päivi
P
Pekkanen
Juha
J
Pukkala
Eero
E
Ilus
Taina
T
Salonen
Laina
L
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015331:Cohort Studies; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000032:analysis*; D005260:Female; D005387:Finland / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D007938:Leukemia / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008297:Male; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D011883:Radium / Q000032:analysis; D011886:Radon / Q000032:analysis; D012016:Reference Values; D012307:Risk Factors; D014501:Uranium / Q000032:analysis*; D014875:Water Pollutants, Radioactive / Q000032:analysis*; D014881:Water Supply / Q000032:analysis*
D014875:Water Pollutants, Radioactive; D014501:Uranium; D011886:Radon; D011883:Radium