Fukushima: 'Small increased cancer risk'

People living near the damaged Fukushima nuclear plant in Japan have an increased risk of developing some cancers, the World Health Organization says. The increased risk is limited to communities and some emergency workers exposed to radiation after the 2011 earthquake and tsunami, analysis shows. For those living in the rest of Japan there is no health risk, it said. Experts stressed the increased lifetime risk of cancer remained small. The report is part of an ongoing assessment by international experts on the fallout from severe damage to the Fukushima Daiichi plant. In March 2011, a powerful tsunami generated by a magnitude-9.0 earthquake out at sea slammed into the nuclear power plant in north-eastern Japan, damaging four of six reactors at the site. Around 16,000 people were killed by the impact of the earthquake.A substantial amount of radiation was released into the environment and a 20km (12 miles) evacuation zone was set up. The latest analysis has found that those living in the most contaminated areas around Fukushima are expected to have a small but higher than expected risk of cancer. The biggest lifetime risks were seen in those exposed as infants, compared with children or adults. For girls exposed to radiation from the accident as infants, the report found a 4% increase above the lifetime expected risk of solid tumours and a 6% increase above that expected for breast cancer. Boys exposed as infants are expected to have a 7% increased risk of leukaemia above that expected in the normal population. The biggest risk was seen in thyroid cancer, which for infant girls could be up to 70% higher than expected over their lifetime. BBC