Sustained lower incidence of thyroid cancer in West Cumbria, UK

Jonker, Leon ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5867-4663 , Brewer, Chris and Williams, Michael R. (2015) Sustained lower incidence of thyroid cancer in West Cumbria, UK. Journal of Thyroid Disorders & Therapy, 4 (3).

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Abstract

Background: In recent years, incidences of thyroid cancer have increased in developed countries; one of the known risk factors for thyroid cancer is exposure to radioiodine. Previous research by Bowlt and Tiplady [5] has shown an inverse link between radioactive iodine levels contained in thyroid tissue of deceased inhabitants and the distance they lived from the Sellafield nuclear facility in Cumbria, UK.

Objectives: The present study aimed to determine what thyroid cancer incidences were in the regional localities in Cumbria for the last decade.

Methods: An ethics-approved retrospective cohort study in which age-standardised incidence of thyroid cancer per 100,000 population was compared between localities within Cumbria and with UK average figures.

Conclusions: The present study shows that the apparent lower incidence of thyroid cancer in West Cumbria has persisted, although due to the limited number of thyroid cancers diagnosed, a statistically significant difference was not observed. Further research – potentially involving populations living near sources of radioiodine emission - is indicated to investigate if there are any mechanisms that underlie this apparent trend.

Item Type:	Article
Journal / Publication Title:	Journal of Thyroid Disorders & Therapy
Publisher:	OMICS International
ISSN:	2167-7948
Departments:	Research Centres > Cumbrian Centre for Health Technologies (CACHET)
Depositing User:	Insight Administrator
Date Deposited:	21 Mar 2016 12:28
Last Modified:	12 Jan 2024 14:16
URI:	https://insight.cumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/2029

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