Fig. 1.
Maps of Belarus depicting by district (oblast) the level of groundwater pollution with nitrate (mg/L) measured in open wells in 1988–1990 (a) and the prevalence (per 1,000) of pediatric thyroid cancer in 1986–2005 in the cohort ages 0–18 years at exposure to radioactive fallout from the Chernobyl accident (b). In b, areas exposed to such fallout are bounded with black lines, and radioactive contamination due to radioiodine in 1986 (in kBq/m2) is shown in small numerals. Notably, areas of greatest pediatric thyroid cancer prevalence tend to coincide with areas characterized by both a high radiation exposure and high nitrate pollution of groundwater.