Incidence of oncological pathologies 2002-2010 in the southwestern Piedmont area, province of Vercelli, neighbouring municipalities of former nuclear sites.

Abstract

The Vercelli Province counts two former nuclear installations: a radioactive waste disposal area in Saluggia and a former nuclear power plant in Trino. This study takes also into account four other neighbouring municipalities, counting 20,000 total inhabitants. We studied the incidence of neoplastic pathologies in the 2002-2010 period. The data sources were Hospital Discharge Form (SDO), histological reports from the Registry of Hospital Charts (RHC) and Italy's National Statistics Institute (ISTAT) reports, and the Cancer Register of Turin. The research highlights the excesses for all type of cancers (SIR=1,11; IC 1,04-1,18), including the ones of nervous system (SIR=2,23 IC 1,47-2,98), leukaemia (SIR=1,94 IC 1,35-2,52), and bones (SIR=12,0 IC 9,22-14,7), according to different aggregation levels by age, sex and housing area. Considering such results, previous studies, and the environmental and occupational risk factors in the area, we believe that further epidemiological and environmental studies should be conducted in this area.