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Reprocessing plants and childhood leukaemia

01 January 1991

Reprocessing plants and childhood leukaemia
artdoc May=1992

Northern European Nuclear Information Group (NENIG)
February 1990

A report on a new study into the causes of the clusters of
leukaemia round the Sellafield reprocessing plant has just been
published.

The study was carried out by researchers from the Medical
Research Council, lead by Professor Martin Gardner. They
looked for -links between the cases of childhood leukaemia in
tie Sellafield area, and the Sellafield Reprocessing Plant.
They found that there was a close link between the child
victims of the leukaemia and the plant. It was discovered that
many of the children had fathers who worked at the plant, and
who had received high level doses of radiation.

The researchers concluded that children born to men working in
the plant, who had received radiation doses of more than 100
milliSeiverts, had the risks of suffering from leukaemia
increased by a factor of 6 to 8 times as a result. This
research demonstrates that the reprocessing industry threatens
the wellbeing of the families of its workers. The research
once again undermines the idea of a 'safe' dose of radiation,
and leads NENIG to believe that all radiation doses carry an
increased risk of illness.