Table A

 Cancers under age of 15 years in children of male nuclear workers, classified according to paternal employment history before conception, monitoring for radiation exposure, and estimated radiation dose with separate analysis excluding children who may have been included in the study by Gardner et al10

 

 

All children

 

 

Excluding children born in Cumbria before 1986

 

No of cancers (offspring-years*)

Rate ratio† (95% CI)

No of cancers (offspring-years*)

Rate ratio† (95% CI)

All malignancies

 

 

 

 

 

Before employment‡ and monitoring§

23 (251 208)

1.0

 

 

18 (214 421)

1.0

After employment‡ not monitored§

5 (68 009)

0.7 (0.3 to 1.9)

 

 

5 (64 807)

0.9 (0.3 to 2.4)

Monitored (all)§:

22 (174 434)

1.2 (0.6 to 2.3)

 

 

17 (131 382)

1.4 (0.7 to 2.9)

External radiation only

13 (107 138)

1.2 (0.6 to 2.5)

 

 

10 (85 178)

1.3 (0.6 to 3.1)

External and internal

9 (67 297)

1.2 (0.6 to 2.8)

 

 

7 (46 203)

1.6 (0.6 to 3.9)

Cumulative external dose (mSv)¶:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

<0.1

0 (6 617)

0.0 (-)

 

0 (6 393)

0.0 (-)

0.1-

15 (128 767)

1.1 (0.6 to 2.2)

 

12 (105 042)

1.2 (0.6 to 2.7)

50-

3 (18 797)

1.6 (0.4 to 5.6)

 

2 (10 523)

2.1 (0.4 to 9.7)

³

100

4 (16 988)

2.3 (0.7 to 6.9)

 

3 (6354)

4.9 (1.3 to 17.9)

Estimated cumulative dose in 6 months before conception (mSv)¶:

 

 

 

 

 

<0.1

5 (35 989)

1.3 (0.5 to 3.5)

 

5 (32 424)

1.6 (0.6 to 4.5)

0.1-

12 (108 497)

1.1 (0.5 to 2.2)

 

9 (85 732)

1.1 (0.5 to 2.6)

5-

2 (14 088)

1.4 (0.3 to 6.4)

 

1 (6 273)

1.8 (0.2 to 14.7)

³

10

3 (12 596)

2.5 (0.7 to 8.5)

 

2 (3 882 )

6.0 (1.4 to 26.6)

Leukaemia and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma

Before employment‡ and monitoring§

8 (251 268)

1.0

 

 

5 (214 465)

1.0

After employment‡ not monitored§

3 (68 025)

1.2 (0.3 to 4.5)

 

 

3 (64 822)

1.7 (0.4 to 7.3)

Monitored (all)§:

11 (174 463)

1.6 (0.6 to 4.6)

 

 

9 (131 401)

2.4 (0.7 to 8.5)

External radiation only

7 (107 154)

1.7 (0.5 to 5.4)

 

 

6 (85 185)

2.6 (0.7 to 9.9)

External and internal

4 (67 310)

1.5 (0.4 to 5.3)

 

 

3 (46 216)

2.2 (0.5 to 10.0)

Cumulative external dose (mSv)¶:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

<0.1

0 (6 617)

0.0 (-)

 

0 (6 393)

0.0 (-)

0.1-

8 (128 785)

1.6 (0.5 to 4.8)

 

8 (105 050)

2.7 (0.7 to 9.7)

50-

1 (18 805)

1.4 (0.2 to 11.8)

 

0 (10 530)

0.0 (-)

³

100

2 (16 992)

3.0 (0.5 to 16.3)

 

1 (6 358)

5.2 (0.5 to 53.0)

Estimated cumulative dose in 6 months before conception (mSv)¶:

 

 

 

 

 

<0.1

3 (35 992)

2.0 (0.5 to 9.0)

 

3 (32 427)

3.1 (0.6 to 16.3)

0.1-

6 (108 518)

1.4 (0.4 to 4.5)

 

5 (85 745)

2.1 (0.5 to 8.0)

5-

0 (14 089)

0.0 (-)

 

0 (6 273)

0.0 (-)

³

10

2 (12 599)

4.4 (0.9 to 22.7)

 

1 (3 885)

9.8 (1.0 to 95.1)

Leukaemia

Before employment‡ and monitoring§

6 (251 275)

1.0

 

 

4 (214 470)

1.0

After employment ‡ not monitored§

2 (68 027)

1.1 (0.2 to 5.2)

 

 

2 (64 824)

1.5 (0.3 to 7.7)

Monitored (all)§

10 (174 465)

2.1 (0.7 to 6.8)

 

 

8 (131 402)

2.8 (0.7 to 11.6)

External radiation only

7 (107 154)

2.4 (0.7 to 8.4)

 

 

6 (85 185)

3.3 (0.8 to 14.2)

External and internal

3 (67 311)

1.6 (0.4 to 7.2)

 

 

2 (46 217)

1.9 (0.3 to 12.1)

Cumulative external dose (mSv)¶:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

<0.1

0 (6 617)

0.0 (-)

 

0 (6 393)

0.0 (-)

0.1-

7 (128 786)

2.0 (0.6 to 6.9)

 

7 (105 051)

3.1 (0.7 to 13.0)

50-

1 (18 805)

2.0 (0.2 to 17.6)

 

0 (10 530)

0.0 (-)

³

100

2 (16 992)

4.3 (0.7 to 25.3)

 

1 (6 358)

6.9 (0.6 to 76.9)

Estimated cumulative dose in 6 months before conception (mSv)¶:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

<0.1

3 (35 992)

2.9 (0.6 to 13.1)

 

3 (32 427)

3.6 (0.7 to 19.0)

0.1-

5 (108 520)

1.7 (0.5 to 5.7)

 

4 (85 746)

1.9 (0.5 to 8.0)

5-

0 (14 089)

0.0 (-)

 

0 (6 273)

0.0 (-)

³

10

2 (12 599)

6.0 (1.2 to 30.50)

 

1 (3 885)

11.5 (1.2 to 106.5)

All cancers except leukaemia and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma

Before employment‡ and monitoring§

15 (251 215)

1.0

 

 

13 (214 424)

1.0

After employment ‡ not monitored§

2 (68 013)

0.5 (0.1 to 2.1)

 

 

2 (64 811)

0.5 (0.1 to 2.4)

Monitored (all)§

11 (174 488)

1.0 (0.5 to 2.2)

 

 

8 (131 424)

1.0 (0.4 to 2.4)

External radiation only

6 (107 157)

0.9 (0.3 to 2.4)

 

 

4 (85 195)

0.8 (0.2 to 2.5)

External and internal

5 (67 331)

1.1 (0.4 to 3.1)

 

 

4 (46 228)

1.3 (0.4 to 4.1)

Cumulative external dose (mSv)¶:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

<0.1

0 (6 617)

0.0 (-)

 

0 (6.393)

0 (-)

0.1-

7 (128 805)

0.9 (0.4 to 2.0)

 

4 (105 086)

2.7 (0.7 to 9.7)

50-

2 (18 807)

1.7 (0.4 to 8.1)

 

2 (10 523)

-

³

100

2 (16 994)

1.9 (0.4 to 8.4)

 

2 (6 358)

5.2 (0.5 to 53)

Estimated cumulative dose in 6 months before conception (mSv)¶:

 

 

 

 

 

<0.1

2 (35 988)

0.8 (0.2 to 3.4)

 

2 (32 429)

0.9 (0.2 to 3.9)

0.1-

6 (108 546)

0.9 (0.3 to 2.2)

 

4 (85 772)

0.7 (0.2 to 2.3)

5-

2 (14 088)

2.3 (0.5 to 10.8)

 

1 (6 373)

2.6 (0.3 to 22.3)

³

10

1 (12 601)

1. 3 (0.2 to 1.0)

 

1 (3 886)

4.4 (0.6 to 33.0)

A 0.1 mSv group is shown to make results comparable with those of Draper et al.23 24

*Offspring-years up to diagnosis, death, or date of survey.

†Estimated rate ratios adjusted for calendar period, age and sex of child, and for the number of children born to each parent.

‡According to date of first service with nuclear authority in personnel record supplied by employer.

§Monitoring defined as presence of a record of monitoring for external sources of ionising radiation at Atomic Weapons Establishments, Atomic Energy Authority, British Nuclear Fuels or a previous employer, or date first externally monitored present in personnel record, or flag/date of monitoring for internal radionuclides.

¶Cumulative paternal dose. For 947 (3%) of children (3265 offspring-years) the cumulative dose at conception was not known, either because although there was evidence that the father had been internally monitored, there was no external dose record or because the first external dose record was a transfer dose, or because there was evidence from the personnel record that the father had been monitored but there was no external dose record.