| This analytical data file set consists of 14 files pertaining to the three U.S. nuclear sites (Hanford, Oak Ridge, and Rocky Flats) included in an international combined cohort study of cancer mortality among nuclear industry workers in the U.S., United Kingdom, and Canada by Elisabeth Cardis, et al. |
| The objective of this IARC study was to conduct pooled analyses of nuclear industry workers by combining data from existing studies in the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada in a way that would minimize differences between these populations and their dosimetry. The motivation for conducting pooled analyses is threefold. First, estimates of carcinogenic risk per unit would be more precise with a larger worker population. Second, by applying comparable methodology and data protocol, a better understanding of differences and similarities among the existing studies could be achieved. Third, an international cooperative effort would encourage future participation of additional sites with suitable data. |
| The MFI93A01 data file set is comprised of 14 analytic files constructed using the IARC protocol. MFI93A01_d1 through MFI93A01_d4 contain Hanford Site data prepared by Pacific Northwest Laboratory. MFI93A01_d5 through MFI93A01_d9 contain ORNL data prepared by Oak Ridge Associated Universities. MFI93A01_d10 through MFI93A01_d14 contain RFP data prepared by Los Alamos National Laboratory. |
| The first file, MFI93A01_d1, contains demographic, work history, vital status, and internal deposition data. There is one record for each of 44,106 workers. The second file, MFI93A01_d2, contains external exposure data. There are 342,645 records, one for each year of external exposure data for each of 36,927 monitored workers. The third file, MFI93A01_d3, contains additional internal exposure data. There are 324 records, one for each year of internal exposure data for each of 125 workers. The fourth file, MFI93A01_d4, contains additional data related to internal exposures, off-site exposures, and cause of death. There is one record for each of 44,106 workers. |
| The fifth file, MFI93A01_d5, contains demographic, work history, and vital status data. There is one record for each of 8,314 workers. The sixth file, MFI93A01_d6, contains additional vital status data. There are 1,525
records for 1,524 workers. The seventh file, MFI93A01_d7, contains external exposure data. There are 179,580 records, one for each year of external exposure data for each of 8,314 workers. The eighth file, MFI93A01_d8, contains internal exposure data. There is one record for each of 2,325 workers. The ninth file, MFI93A01_d9, contains additional exposure data. There are 11,848 records, one for each year of internal exposure data for each of 3,276 workers. |
| The tenth file, MFI93A01_d10, contains demographic, work history, and vital status data. There is one record for each of 7,575 workers. The eleventh file, MFI93A01_d11, contains additional vital status data. There are 674 records for 671 workers. The twelfth file, MFI93A01_d12, contains external exposure data. There are 65,912 records, one for each year of external exposure data for each of 7,496 workers. The thirteenth file, MFI93A01_d13, contains internal exposure data. There is one record for each of 5,317 workers. The fourteenth file, MFI93A01_d14, contains off-site exposures. There is one record for each of five workers. |
| Workers at the Hanford Site were involved in a variety of activities that resulted in their exposure to radiation, including reactor operations, chemical separation of reactor fuel to obtain plutonium, treatment and storage of hazardous waste, and biological and engineering research. |
| Personal dosimeters (film or thermoluminescent) have been used at Hanford since 1944. Annual whole-body doses to penetrating external radiation are presented in units of millisieverts. Quality factors of 10 for fast neutrons, 3 for slow neutrons, and 1 for photons and electrons were used in the conversion of exposure to dose. |
| Bioassay programs to detect exposures to internally deposited radionuclides, primarily transuranics, at Hanford also were initiated in 1944. Internal exposure data were collected and evaluated for all individuals who worked in locations where there was a potential for intake of radioactive material. |
| ORNL began monitoring personnel for exposure to external penetrating radiation, primarily gamma rays, in 1943. Pocket chambers were used until June 1944, when film dosimeters (film badges) became the primary dosimeters. In 1975, film dosimeters were replaced with thermoluminescent dosimeters. From 1943 until the early 1950s, the usual practice was to provide personal dosimeters to only those workers entering designated areas where there was a potential for exposure. Subsequently, all workers at ORNL were monitored. |
| Based primarily on the potential for contamination from their work area, some workers were monitored for internal exposure to radionuclides beginning in 1951. Additional workers were monitored to evaluate exposures incurred during incidents. Internal exposures were determined by examining results of urine and fecal bioassays and whole-body counting. Quantitative dose estimates from internally deposited radionuclides are not available because such estimates were not required. Also, all of the basic data needed to compute doses for the many radionuclides used at ORNL are not computerized. However, knowledgeable plant health physicists and dosimetrists state that the majority of internal monitoring results for this cohort suggest small internal doses, especially when compared with external doses. |
| RFP has been a weapons facility since 1952. Sources of occupational exposure include external radiation, both gamma and neutron, and potential for internal deposition of plutonium-239. Film dosimeters and thermoluminescent dosimeters were used to monitor for external radiation. Formal bioassay programs to monitor for internal radiation were begun in 1952. Results of both types of monitoring programs reflect technological improvements and changes in concepts and models during these years. |
