Incidence of breast cancer in the life span study of atomic bomb survivors: 1958-2009
Open accessAbstract
The importance of reproductive history in breast tissue development and etiology of sporadic breast cancer in females is well established. However, there is limited evidence of factors, other than age, that modify risk of radiation-related breast cancer. In this study, we evaluated breast cancer incidence in the Life Span Study cohort of atomic bomb survivors, adding 11 years of follow-up and incorporating reproductive history data. We used Poisson regression models to describe radiation risks and modifying effects of age and reproductive factors. Among 62,534 females, we identified 1,470 breast cancers between 1958 and 2009. Of 397 new cases diagnosed since 1998, 75% were exposed before age 20. We found a strong linear dose response with excess relative risk (ERR) of 1.12 per Gy [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.73 to 1.59] for females at age 70 after exposure at age 30. The ERR decreased with increasing attained age ( P = 0.007) while excess absolute rate (EAR) increased with attained age up to age 70 ( P < 0.001). Age at menarche was a strong modifier of the radiation effect: for a given dose, both the ERR and EAR decreased with increasing age at menarche ( P = 0.007 and P < 0.001). Also, independently, age-at-exposure effects on ERR and EAR differed before and after menarche ( P = 0.043 and P = 0.015, respectively, relative to log-linear trends), with highest risks for exposures around menarche. Despite the small number of male breast cancers (n = 10), the data continue to suggest a dose response (ERR per Gy = 5.7; 95% CI: 0.3 to 30.8; P = 0.018). Persistently increased risk of female breast cancer after radiation exposure and its modification pattern suggests heightened breast sensitivity during puberty.
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The INWORKS study is only 9% female while the LSS is 60% female and has doses more distributed near 600 mSv.
“The INWORKS study is only 9% female while the LSS is 60% female and doses more distributed near 600 mSv”
From A proposed change to astronaut exposures limits is a giant leap backwards for radiation protection (2021) · cites this paper as Brenner et al., 2018
Table 1 (page unavailable) reports 62,534 females and 42,910 males in the LSS cohort, making it approximately 59% female. It also lists dose categories extending through 0.5 Gy and above, but most participants are in lower-dose categories; it does not establish that doses were concentrated near 600 mSv. The paper does not substantiate the claim that INWORKS was 9% female or compare its dose distribution with the LSS. (LLM, conf=0.87)
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A proposed change to astronaut exposures limits is a giant leap backwards for radiation protection
Cucinotta, F. A., Schimmerling, W., Blakely, E. A., & Hei, T. K. (2021) · Life Sciences in Space Research · doi:10.1016/j.lssr.2021.07.005 · Cited by 35 · see citing works
- Authors
- Brenner, A. V., Preston, D. L., Sakata, R., Sugiyama, H., de Gonzalez, A. B., French, B., Utada, M., Cahoon, E. K., Sadakane, A., Ozasa, K., Grant, E. J., & Mabuchi, K.
- Affiliations
- Radiation Effects Research Foundation (JP)
- Hirosoft International, Eureka, California
- Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, Bethesda, Maryland
- National Institutes of Health (US)
- Corresponding author
- Brenner, Alina V.
- ORCID
- Venue
- Radiation Research
- Publisher
- Radiation Research Society
- Published
- 2018-07-25
- Volume
- 190
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 433
- ISSN
- 0033-7587 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC10284068
- OpenAlex
- W2883283279
- Cited by
- 113
- References
- 52
- Citations by year
- 2026: 8 · 2025: 18 · 2024: 14 · 2023: 11 · 2022: 16 · 2021: 20 · 2020: 19 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 1
- FWCI
- 7.93
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Radiation Research (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- OSTI OAI (U.S. Department of Energy Office of Scientific and Technical Information) (submittedVersion)
- BioOne Complete (BioOne) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- U.S. Department of Energy (DEHS0000031)
- Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (DE-HS0000031)
- National Institutes of Health
- National Cancer Institute (ZIACP010134, HHSN261201400009C)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging › Effects of Radiation Exposure
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging › Radiation Dose and Imaging
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Oncology › Global Cancer Incidence and Screening
- Keywords
- breast cancer incidence, atomic bomb survivors, Life Span Study, radiation-induced cancer, reproductive history, age at menarche, age at exposure, dose-response relationship, excess relative risk, excess absolute risk, male breast cancer, puberty
- MeSH terms
- Radiation Exposure, Adult, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Breast Neoplasms, Female, Humans, Japan, Middle Aged, Neoplasms, Radiation-Induced, Incidence, Survivors, History, 20th Century, History, 21st Century, Nuclear Weapons
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