Chernobyl Accident Research Articles

Area Dose-Response and Radiation Origin of Childhood Thyroid Cancer in Fukushima Based on Thyroid Dose in UNSCEAR 2020/2021: High 131I Exposure Comparable to Chernobyl.

The FMU and the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR) concluded that the high incidence of thyroid cancer after the Fukushima nuclear accident was not the result of radiation exposure, but rather might have been overdiagnosis based on the low thyroid dose estimated in the UNSCEAR 2020/2021 report. In this study, the origin of increased PTC in Fukushima was examined based on the thyroid dose estimated by UNSCEAR. The dose-response relationship of the incidence rate per person-years (PY) was analyzed for four areas in Fukushima prefecture via regression analysis. The linear response of the annual incidence rates to thyroid dose in the first six years showed that the dominant origin of childhood thyroid cancer was radiation exposure. Excess absolute risk (EAR) proportionally increased with thyroid dose, with an EAR/104 PY Gy of 143 (95%CI: 122, 165) in the second TUE (p < 0.001), which is approximately 50-100 times higher than the EAR/104 PY Gy ≒ 2.3 observed after the Chernobyl accident. This suggests an underestimation of the thyroid dose by UNSCEAR of approximately 1/50~1/100 compared with the thyroid dose for Chernobyl. The increased childhood thyroid cancer in Fukushima was found to arise from radioactive iodine exposure, which was comparable to that in Chernobyl.

Radioactive contamination of mushrooms from Polis'ke Forestry (Kyiv Region, Ukraine) long after the Chornobyl accident.

Radioactive contamination of mushrooms from Polis'ke Forestry (Kyiv Region, Ukraine) long after the Chornobyl accident.

Long-term study (1987-2023) on the distribution of 137Cs in soil following the Chernobyl nuclear accident: a comparison of temporal migration measurements and compartment model predictions.

After the Chernobyl accident, a designated area of ~1000m2 within the University farm of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Northern Greece was utilized as a test ground for radioecological measurements. The profile of 137Cs in the soil was monitored from 1987 to 2023, with soil samples collected in 5-cm-thick slices (layers) down to a depth of 30cm. The mean total deposition of 137Cs in the area, backdated to the time of the Chernobyl accident, was determined to be 18.6±1.8kBqm-2 based on four follow-up profile measurements of 137Cs in the soil for the years 2022 and 2023. It is noteworthy that this value is similar the total deposition at the site, which was independently measured to be about 20kBqm-2 during the first year after the Chernobyl accident. The fractional contribution of each soil layer (e.g., 0-5cm, 5-10cm, 10-15cm, etc.) to the total deposition of 137Cs (0-30cm) is presented and analyzed. A compartment model was utilized to forecast the temporal evolution of fractional contributions of the different soil layers to the total deposition of 137Cs (0-30cm). In this model, each soil layer is represented as a separate compartment. The model assumes that the transfer rates between adjacent compartments are equal. The agreement between the measured fractional contributions and the model predictions suggests that the compartment model with equal transfer rates can capture the broad patterns of 137Cs migration within the soil layers over the long period of 1987-2023. However, the use of a second compartment model with increasing transfer rates between consecutive soil layers did not align with the observed outcomes. This indicates that diffusion may not be the primary migration mechanism over the 36-y period covered by our study.

Dynamical analysis of position-sensitive water-robot in radioactively contaminated areas by machine learning (ML) algorithm

It is analyzed for the water-robot which works in radioactively contaminated areas of nuclear accident sites where the core-melted accident in the Fukushima and Chernobyl disasters is the target modeling of controlling the behavior in the harsh areas by radiation. The radiation detector is a particular characteristic of the water-robot in the nuclear power plant (NPP)’s disaster areas in which the artificial intelligence (AI) algorithm is analyzed for the performance of the robot. A figure shows the comparisons of parameters in which Specificity and Accuracy are quite higher in the time step of 0.25 min. The normalized radioactivity is simulated in a time step of 0.25 min. The radioactive decay graph decreases in exponential form. Following the robot movements, the radioactivity decreases gradually showing the discrete oscillating. The system is easy to be designed, because the moving path by the radiation distribution, because the contaminated structures give the radiation data.

Особенности использования лимфоцитарного теста для биологической дозиметрии в ранние сроки после облучения

When eliminating the consequences of large-scale radiation accidents, primary triage of victims is of key importance during the early phase of medical evacuation. Information about lymphocyte counts (blood test) per unit of peripheral blood volume can be used for this purpose. The study was aimed to validate the method of using a lymphocyte test for prediction of acute radiation injury severity in the first days after the exposure associated with the radiation mass casualty incident, given peripheral blood was tested once. We performed correlation analysis of the data of laboratory studies focused on quantifying lymphocytes in peripheral blood of victims during the first days following the Chernobyl disaster and other radiation accidents on the territory of the countries of the former USSR (115 individuals), including radiation accidents with gamma neutron radiation (20 individuals). It was found that with the lymphocyte concentration of 0.2–1.0 × 109/L on day 2 after exposure, the absolute error of estimated dose was ±1.5 Gy in case of gamma exposure and ±1.3 Gy in case of exposure to gamma neutron radiation. When the lymphocyte concentration exceeds 1.0 × 109/L, mild acute radiation syndrome (ARS) is predicted, given the average dose is below 2.0 Gy; when the lymphocyte concentration is less than 0.2 × 109/L&lt; the estimated average dose exceeds 4.0 Gy, which corresponds to severe or extremely severe ARS. Thanks to the lymphocyte test accessibility and simplicity, this biological dosimetry method can occupy a worthy position in the diagnosis of radiation injury associated with large-scale accidents, since the results of cytogenetic tests are not available within first days after the accident.

“Misguided radiations”: reactions of the political and administrative leadership from Hungary to the Chernobyl nuclear disaster

The Chernobyl disaster constituted a serious challenge, not only for the Soviet Union - embarked on the path of reforms initiated by Mikhail Gorbachev -, but also for the signatory countries of the Warsaw Pact - among which at that time was the RPU (People’s Republic Hungary – Magyar Népköztársaság). The content of the questions to which political leaders and specialists from the most different fields of activity had to find concrete and immediate answers, aimed at the manner in which a crisis situation could be treated, the effects and proportions of which could only be imagined, as there was no precedent. Under these conditions, the dissemination of information to Western countries was done, in accordance with the totalitarian practice of the time, through the propaganda apparatuses of the regimes in the satellite states of Moscow, taking into account the interests of the Kremlin. From the study of archival materials, it appears that the RPU had approaches characteristic of a dictatorship in transition.

Kenji Yanobe, Atom Suit, and Chornobyl

This article examines the Atom Suit Project carried out by Japanese artist Kenji Yanobe in the Chornobyl zone in 1997. Employing an ecocritical theoretical lens, I focus on the relationship between the artwork and the place of its stage—a site of a nuclear disaster—in order to better understand art’s agency in the face of the ecological emergencies caused by the nuclear industry’s impact on the planet’s environment locally and globally. In brief, the main claim of the article is this: if the Chornobyl disaster endangered the basic biological need of staying alive, the Atom Suit Project surpassed trivializing survival as an art theme and instead enacted it as an aspect of the disaster’s reality. In the main body of the article, I support this claim by detailing the project’s survival strategies ranging from radiation shielding, body mobility, and the danger detection system to evoking hope and interfering with the politics of nuclear denial. The article’s concluding section discusses the Atom Suit Project’s potential to survive into the deep future.

Administrative and legal relations for the provision of administrative guardianship in the field of higher education

The state guarantees equal access to higher education. Due to the Chernobyl disaster, war, or other circumstances (death of both parents or deprivation of their parental rights, damage to health, which led to limitation of life activities and establishment of disability), we have entrants who do not have the opportunity to exercise their right to higher education on equal terms with other entrants who were not affected by these circumstances.&#x0D; We have a number of legislative acts to regulate these relations to ensure equal access to higher education for socially disadvantaged population groups, among which the Constitution of Ukraine and the Law of Ukraine «On Education» are generally declarative in national legislation. The Law «On Higher Education» already specifies the subjects of administrative guardianship in the field of higher education, as well as their right to a specific type of administrative guardianship in the field of higher education. Exercising his right to equal access to higher education, the subject of administrative guardianship in the field of higher education applies to the institution of higher education with a request to provide a specific type of administrative guardianship in the field of higher education, the institution of higher education takes measures to provide administrative guardianship in the field of higher education. Relations arise, which should be called administrative-legal relations of administrative guardianship in the field of higher education. Why precisely administrative-legal relations, because firstly, these relations are regulated by the norms of administrative law, for example, the norms regulating the procedure for admission to an institution of higher education and relating to subjects of administrative guardianship in the field of higher education are created and approved by the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, that is, by the central body of the executive power, secondly, in the presence of a wide range of rights, the student is in a certain subordination to the institution of higher education, so according to Article 63 of the Law of Ukraine «On Higher Education», the student of the institution of higher education undertakes to observe the statute and internal regulations of the institution of higher education, comply with the requirements for occupational health and safety, safety technology, industrial sanitation, and fire safety provided by the relevant rules and instructions, comply with the requirements of the educational (scientific) program (individual curriculum (if available), observing academic integrity, and achieve the study results determined for the corresponding level of higher education, thirdly, administrative guardianship in the field of higher education is provided at the expense of the state budget, fourthly, administrative-legal relations regarding the provision of administrative guardianship in the field of higher education arise in the presence of administrative-legal norms , which prescribe them. Institutions of higher education under the supervision of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, as well as persons who are entrants or students of higher education and wish to receive administrative guardianship in the field of higher education, are the subjects of administrative-legal relations regarding administrative guardianship in the field of higher education. This article is dedicated to the study of the topic of administrative-legal relations for the provision of administrative guardianship in the field of higher education, subjects, objects and legal grounds for the emergence, change and termination of these relations.

The state of the cognitions of clean-up workers of the consequences of the Chernobyl accident

Purpose: Clinical and neuropsychiatric assessment of the state of the cognitive functions of clean up workers of the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.Comparative examination of the cognitive functions of a group of clean up workers of the consequences of the Chernobyl accident, suffering from non-psychotic psychoorganic syndrome and patients with of cerebrovascular brain damage, using clinical, clinical-metric and neuropsychological methods. Psychopathological and neuropsychological assessment of their condition, correlation of neuropsychological and clinical-psychopathological manifestations of the identified disorders.The study revealed a wide range of cognitive impairments; at the remote stages, they dem onstrate an increase in cognitive impairment with the inclusion in the neuropsychological profile of predementia signs of the «Alzheimer’s» type. The predominance of violations of the regulatory mechanisms of cognitive functions over operational, predominantly neurodynamic, was noted. An increase in psycho-organic symptoms occurring against the background of somatic disorders can provoke previously unmanifested signs of neurodegenerative processes. Conative (motivational) disorders are also characteristic of the DS subgroup and are associated with altered affective mechanisms that are available for recovery as affective disorders are reduced. The structure of the clinical state of patients with LPA gravitates towards the psycho-pathological and neuropsychological profile of the CDS subgroup and is determined by the inclusion of deep structural mechanisms of cognitive impairment. The loss or decline in cognitive capabilities is acutely and painfully experienced in the LPA group; perhaps, there is not a true loss of skills, but some overvalued processing of the existing decline in professional level and household self-service abilities.

Prussian Blue to reduce radiocaesium accumulation in fish in lakes affected by the Chornobyl accident

Fish in lakes situated within the Chornobyl exclusion zone have been highly contaminated since the accident and have not been utilized as food for humans. In the present study, field experiments with less-contaminated silver Prussian carp (Carassius gibelio (Bloch, 1782)) caged in contaminated lake within the Chornobyl exclusion zone was performed from June to October 2021 to investigate the effectiveness of clean feed containing potassium ferric hexacyanoferrate (KFCF) KFe[Fe(CN)6], a kind of Prussian Blue as a countermeasure to reduce 137Cs accumulation in fish. The addition of clean feed containing 0.1% or 1% KFCF resulted respectively in 2.4 ± 0.4 or 4.2 ± 0.7 times lower activity concentration of 137Cs in muscle tissue of the carp compared to control fish with clean feed without KFCF and in 7–16 or 12–27 times lower activities compared to fish without additional clean feeding. After 18 weeks exposure, 137Cs levels in all the caged fish except for the control group were below the European permissible level (600 Bq kg−1) for consumption. In contrast, KFCF did not affect the intake of 90Sr in fish, although additional feed increased the growth rate and thereby accumulation in bone tissues. Hence, the use of clean feed containing KFCF is judged to be an effective and inexpensive countermeasure to reduce the 137Cs contamination of edible fish muscles.

Second Primary Cancer Among Patients With Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma Following the Chernobyl Disaster

To our knowledge, there are no complete population-based studies of the risks of developing second malignant tumors after papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) in patients following the Chernobyl nuclear accident. To study the risk of second primary cancers in patients with PTC after the Chernobyl disaster. This was a retrospective cohort study conducted in the Republic of Belarus over a 31-year time frame evaluating patients with primary PTC and second malignant tumors. Personal data from the Belarussian Cancer Registry were used in the investigation, and only second primary cancers were included in the analysis. Patients were observed from January 1, 1990, to December 31, 2021, for the establishment of second primary malignant tumors. For analysis, synchronous and metachronous tumors were grouped into 1 group (second primary cancer group). If the patient had more than 2 cancers, they were observed until development of a second tumor and, subsequently, the development of a third tumor. The starting point for calculating the number of person-years was the date of thyroid cancer diagnosis. The end point for calculating the number of person-years was the date of diagnosis of the second primary malignant tumor, the date of death, the date of the last visit of the patient, or December 31, 2021 (the end the of study period). The incidence of a second primary malignant tumor with PTC was calculated for the study groups using standardized incidence ratios. Of the 30 568 patients with a primary PTC included in this study, 2820 (9.2%) developed a second malignant tumor (2204 women and 616 men); the mean (SD) age of all patients at time of the primary cancer was 53.9 (12.6) years and at time of the secondary cancer was 61.5 (11.8) years. Overall, the standardized incidence ratio was statistically significant for all types of cancer (1.25; 95% CI, 1.21-1.30), including solid malignant tumors (1.20; 95% CI, 1.15-1.25) and all leukemias (1.61; 95% CI, 2.17-2.13). Cancers of the digestive system (466 cases [21.1%]), genital organs (376 cases [17.1%]), and breasts (603 cases [27.4%]) were the most prevalent second primary tumors in women following PTC. Second primary tumors of the gastrointestinal tract (146 cases [27.7%]), genitourinary system (139 cases [22.6%]), and urinary tract (139 cases [22.6%]) were the most prevalent in men. Urinary tract cancers (307 cases [10.9%]) and gastrointestinal tumors (612 cases [21.4%]) were the most prevalent second primary tumors overall. This cohort study reports the increased incidence of solid secondary tumors in men and women over a 31-year time frame after the Chernobyl disaster. Moreover, there was a statistically significant increased risk of second tumors of the breast, colon, rectum, mesothelium, eye, adnexa, meninges, and adrenal glands as well as Kaposi sarcoma. These data might have an effect on the follow-up of this cohort of patients to detect secondary malignant tumors at an early stage.

Gastrointestinal Pathology in the Long-Term Period After the Chernobyl Accident in Women Eaxposed to Radioactive Iodine During Pregnancy

Gastrointestinal Pathology in the Long-Term Period After the Chernobyl Accident in Women Eaxposed to Radioactive Iodine During Pregnancy

The electoral consequences of environmental accidents: Evidence from Chernobyl

This paper examines the relationship between environmental accidents and voting. Following the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, environmentalist parties entered parliaments in several nations. This paper uses Chernobyl as a natural experiment creating variation in radioactive fallout exposure over Sweden. I match municipality-level data on cesium ground contamination with election results for the environmentalist Green Party, which was elected to parliament in 1988. After adjusting for pre-Chernobyl views on nuclear power, the results show that voters in high-fallout areas were more likely to vote for the Greens. Detailed individual-level survey data suggests that resistance to nuclear energy increased in fallout-effected areas after the accident, and that this change was driven by voters who followed local media closely.

Anthropocentrism and Environmental Apocalypse in Svetlana Alexievich’s Narrative

Svetlana Alexievich’s Voices from Chernobyl: An Oral History of Nuclear Disaster (1997) presents how the age of anthropocene is driving the earth towards an imminent peril. In this era, humans acknowledge they are capable of the technological fix, repair and enhancement of natural systems. For instance, the Chernobyl explosion which occurred in 1986 is a consequence of human centered and technocratic worldview. Its aftermath such as a series of apocalyptic events have appeared in the narrative one after the other, and each existence of this biotic community is deadly threatened. Hence, this paper argues that this oral narrative of Alexievich admonishes the humans of this present era to prevent the future catastrophes by unmasking the perilous consequences of the Chernobyl explosion based on the voices of its survivors. To address the issues raised in the paper, the relevant insights of Lawrence Buell, Lynn White, Val Plumwood and Vandana Shiva are taken as a theoretical framework to analyze how and why humans are wrecking nature, and summoning the end times. Finally, this paper concludes that human beings must learn lessons from past deeds and respect nature as a whole entity in order to save the planet.

137Cs radionuclide migration in soil of Georgian resorts after 31 years from Chernobyl accident

137Cs radionuclide migration in soil of Georgian resorts after 31 years from Chernobyl accident

Recall of residential history and dietary habits during pregnancy and lactation in the distant past: reliability of questionnaire-based radiation doses for persons exposed in utero and early life.

This study evaluates the reliability of information obtained by standardized questionnaires used in by personal interviews for estimation of radiation thyroid doses of 1065 individuals in the Belarusian cohort of individuals who were exposed in utero and early life following the Chernobyl accident in April 1986. Data from two interviews conducted in 2012-2017 and in 2018-2022 with mothers, who were pregnant or gave birth shortly after the Chernobyl accident, were analysed. The most reliable answers dealt with various attributes related to residential history. In contrast, the reliability of answers regarding consumption rates of milk from privately owned cows or trade network was moderate, while the agreement in responses for consumption of milk products and leafy vegetables was fair. Information from the two interviews was used to calculate thyroid doses received by the cohort members. Specifically, 'model-based' thyroid doses due to 131I were estimated using input data on individual residential history and food consumption reported during the personal interviews and ecological data (131I ground deposition in the corresponding settlements). In addition, for a subset of cohort subjects (n = 205) whose mothers were measured for 131I thyroid activity, 'measurement-based' thyroid doses were calculated by adjusting the model-based dose using a scaling factor that is defined as the ratio of measured 131I thyroid activity to model-based 131I thyroid activity calculated for the date of measurement. A moderate agreement was observed for total (prenatal and postnatal) model-based thyroid doses due to 131I intake, the arithmetic mean ± standard deviation for the Jaccard similarity coefficient ([Formula: see text]) was 0.45 ± 0.34 (median = 0.39), while measurement-based doses showed a much better agreement with a [Formula: see text] of 0.78 ± 0.29 (median = 0.93). For model-based thyroid doses from external irradiation and from ingestion of 134Cs and 137Cs, [Formula: see text] was 0.82 ± 0.23 (median = 0.90) and 0.84 ± 0.24 (median = 0.96), respectively. Measurement-based doses due to ingestion of radiocaesium isotopes resulted in an almost perfect agreement, [Formula: see text] was 0.91 ± 0.19 (median = 1.0). The present findings suggest that long-term memory recall can be reliable, if a person is asked about unique or important life events, such as pregnancy and childbirth occurring around the time of a nuclear reactor accident. However, the substantial difference (more than 10 times) observed for model-bases doses calculated using the two questionnaires represents an important source of human factor uncertainties that needs to be considered in any dose response analyses. Other lessons learned from this study are that (i) individual measurements of radionuclides in the human body are the most valuable source of information for estimating radiation doses, and (ii) whenever a radiation accident occurs, a sample of affected people should be asked to keep a diary, if at all possible.

Ionizing radiation-induced cancer: perplexities of the bystander effect.

Ionizing radiation (IR) is a carcinogen. This has been established beyond doubt from many years of studies such as those conducted among the survivors of the atomic bomb attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki and later from the Chernobyl accident. Despite immense progress in the field of carcinogenesis, complete understanding of the underlying mechanisms behind IR-induced cancer remains elusive. In particular, the long gestation period between exposure to IR and the onset of cancer, frequently unpredictable, and sometimes lasting for many years, remains poorly understood. The centrality of DNA damage and misrepair in carcinogenesis research has not entirely benefited IR-induced cancer research and the past decade has seen a shift in understanding radiation-driven cellular mechanisms beyond simplistic models of targeted DNA damage. This paper presents a viewpoint on the gaps in our knowledge of IR-induced cancer with a focus on the non-targeted bystander effect, the mechanisms underlying which may be key to radiotherapeutic advances.

Psychological distress 35 years after the Chornobyl accident in the Lithuanian clean-up workers

ABSTRACT The adverse effects on the health of the Chornobyl nuclear power plant accident clean-up workers have been reported previously. However, there is a lack of studies on the mental health of Chornobyl clean-up workers. The current study explored psychological distress in a sample of Lithuanian clean-up workers 35 years after the accident. In total, 107 Lithuanian Chornobyl clean-up workers (Mage = 62.5) and 107 controls were included in the study. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HAD) was used for the assessment of anxiety and depression. The depression symptoms were significantly higher in the clean-up workers compared to the control group. The prevalence of severe depression symptoms was 23.4% and 4.7% in the Chornobyl clean-up workers and control groups, respectively. The risk for severe depression was associated with Chornobyl clean-up work (adjusted OR = 5.9). No differences in the anxiety symptoms were found between clean-up workers and controls. The study revealed the deteriorated mental health of the Lithuanian Chornobyl clean-up workers 35 years after the disaster – in particular, high levels of depression. Psychosocial support programmes for clean-up workers should be provided to mitigate the adverse effects of the disaster.

SOCIO-GEOGRAPHICAL FACTORS OF THE FORMATION OF UKRAINE’S URBAN NETWORK (1897–2022)

The purpose of this study is to reflect on the socio-geographical factors of the formation of Ukraine’s urban network in 1897–2022 and the changes that led to its structural and quantitative transformations. The article reflects the most important factors that had an impact on the urban network in the historical framework of the inter-census periods 1897–1926–1939; 1939–1959–1970; 1970–1979; 1979–1989, 1989–2001, and 2001–2022. Such important historical events as the industrial revolution in Europe, wars and famine, the rapid development of natural resources, administrative and territorial reforms, urbanization, and militarization of the economy are highlighted. The impact of mass resettlement, the construction of hydroelectric power plants and large enterprises, the development of the transport network, and migrations are reflected. The influence of the USSR’s collapse, the construction policy of the ‘factory-city’ principle, and the Chornobyl disaster are shown up. The article pays attention to the impact on the urban network of the appearance of independent Ukraine, the repatriation of Crimean Tatars, the processes of voucherization and privatization, and the fourth and fifth waves of migration. The processes of the formation and development of agricultural holdings as well as the construction of new and the restoration of old factories are shown to have had their impact on the urban network. The huge impact on the urban network of temporary occupation of parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine and Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014 and Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 is reflected too.

O poczuciu tajemnicy i dylematach gatunkowych w obrębie kategorii konfesyjności w prozie Swietłany Aleksijewicz Czarnobylska modlitwa. Kronika przyszłości

The article refers to Chernobyl prayer, the documentary prose of Svietlana Alexievich. The aim of the article is to draw attention to the presence of the genres of confession and prayer in the reportage. They are used by the interlocutors, who entrusted the journalist with their accounts of the traumatic experiences in connection with the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in 1986. The author focuses on showing various features of both genres (intimacy, familiarity, discretion) and describes them with the perspective of an average person who unknowingly and instinctively searches in them for answers that medicine and science cannot give. Alexievich’s reportage describes the loneliness of an individual in the face of events that most ignore in silence, while their participants remain helpless and mutilated for life.