Those findings will be issued separately by the cognizant organizations. The various authors are identified in a footnote to each chapter.
Chernobyl accident. To address the health, environmental and socioeconomic consequences of the Chernobyl accident, the United Nations in 2003 launched an Inter-Agency initiative, the Chernobyl Forum.
Doses to the thyroid received in the first few months after the accident were particularly high in those who were children and adolescents at the time in Belarus, Ukraine and the most affected Russian regions and drank milk with high levels of radioactive iodine.
Iodine becomeslocalized in the thyroid gland. It is responsible for providing leadership on global health matters,shaping the health research agenda, setting norms and standards, articulating evidence-based policyoptions, providing technical support to countries, and monitoring and assessing health trends.One of the objectives of the on-going UN inter-agency International Chernobyl Research andInformation Network (ICRIN) project is to alleviate the stigma of psychological trauma insociety, encourage self-reliance, and empower local communities to take control over their own lives.One of the ways to achieve these goals is to promote healthy lifestyles, including physical activity andhealthy diet, and to explain the environmental, behavioural, and other risks for various chronic diseases,including cancer. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), an international cancer researchinstitution established by WHO, published estimated projections of 25,000 potential excess cancers forEurope (Cardis et al. Many other radionuclides were associated with the accident, which were also considered in the exposure assessments.The Scientific Committee has been involved from early on in the assessment of radiation exposures and health effects from the accident.The Chernobyl accident caused many severe radiation effects almost immediately. It included reviews of studies carried out on cancers, noncancer diseases, immune and genetic effects, and reproductive and children’s health, as well asevidence-based recommendations for national health authorities and for further research.There is a tendency to attribute increases in rates of all cancers over time to the Chernobyl accident, butit should be noted that increases in cancer in the affected areas were also observed before the accident.Moreover, a general increase in mortality has been reported in recent decades in most areas of theformer Soviet Union, and this must be taken into account when interpreting the results of the accident-related studies.IARC completed an EC-funded project on the development of a strategic research agenda (SRA)for Chernobyl studies (8), where a group of experts and advisors supports proposals for the long-termfunding of a Chernobyl Health Effects Research Foundation (similar to the action taken to create theRadiation Effects Research Foundation some years after the atomic bomb exposures in Japan) togetherwith a series of individual studies covering the main health consequences. title: the chernobyl' accident: social and political implications subject: the chernobyl' accident: social and political implications keywords This entails not only nuclear safety issues and assistance inradiation emergencies, but also the application of clinical techniques connected with such issues.Since 1986, there has been a reported increase in congenital malformations in both contaminated anduncontaminated areas of Belarus which predated Chernobyl and may be the result of increasedregistration of such cases.
Of 600 workers present on the site during the early morning of 26 April 1986, 134 received high doses (0.8-16 Gy) and suffered from radiation sickness. Activities planned underthe ICRIN project include the dissemination of information, through education and training for teachers,medical professionals, community leaders, and the media; providing local residents with practicaladvice on health risks and healthy lifestyles; the creation of internet-equipped information centers inrural areas; and small-scale community infrastructure projects aimed at improving living conditions andpromoting self-reliance.Mention has often been made of WHO's 1959 agreement with the IAEA.