November 20, 2013
Atomic Bomb Disease Institute Professor Noboru Takamura Publishes Paper in Radiation Research Journal, "Radiation Research"
A paper joint-authored by Atomic Bomb Disease Institute Professor Noboru Takamura, School of Medicine Professor Emeritus Shigenobu Nagataki, and researchers from Hiroshima University and the National Institute of Radiological Sciences, titled "Measurements of individual radiation doses in residents living around the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant," was published in the November issue of the "Radiation Research" journal. The illustration used in the paper was also used on the cover of the journal.
The article presented the radiation dose reduction measures used after the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident, and tabulated and summarized actual measurement data for external and internal radiation doses received by individuals in Fukushima Prefecture, information which was primarily published only in Japanese. Specifically, the researchers tabulated and evaluated external doses measured by personal dosimeters (glass badges), and internal doses measured by measurements of thyroid doses by radioactive iodine and measurements of internal doses by radioactive cesium. The research found that the dosage levels for all were extremely limited, and, in particular, the internal thyroid doses were far smaller than those received by residents following the Chernobyl nuclear reactor disaster. This indicates that the food distribution limits, intake limits, and other internal dosage reduction measures taken after the disaster were highly effective.
Most reports regarding doses experienced by residents following the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant disaster were issued by local municipal bodies in Fukushima Prefecture, in Japanese, so there has not been sufficient international evaluation of the data. This paper promises to serve as an important resource in future international debate regarding the impact of the disaster on residents.
