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Barry J. Marshall, MD; Donald G. Baker, PhD
University of Virginia Health Sciences Center Charlottesville

JAMA. 1991;266(5):653.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

To the Editor.

—We read with interest the article by Wing et al,¹ citing an increase in cancer risk of 5% per 10 mSv of cumulative radiation exposure in workers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. We are unable to translate this into practical terms, however. For example, how many extra deaths would this represent per 100 000 population exposed to this total dose (10 mSv) over their lifetimes? How can we relate this to other, self-inflicted risks; eg, diagnostic radiology,² smoking one cigarette per day, riding a bicycle, traveling in a jet plane, or visiting New York City? Can the authors express these risks as shortening of the average life span? In view of the benefits that nuclear workers may derive from their employment (better than normal health care, for example), what is the outcome of a risk-benefit analysis in these workers compared with similar workers in non-nuclear-related . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

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