Abstract
Ionizing radiation is considered a non-threshold carcinogen. However, quantifying the risk of the more commonly encountered low and/or protracted radiation exposures remains problematic and subject to uncertainty. Therefore, a major challenge lies in providing a sound mechanistic understanding of low-dose radiation carcinogenesis. This Perspective article considers whether differences exist between the effects mediated by high- and low-dose radiation exposure and how this affects the assessment of low-dose cancer risk.
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Acknowledgements
We wish to thank P. Jeggo for critical reading of this manuscript and all RISC-RAD partners for contributing to this research area. Financial support to RISC-RAD is provided by the European Commission under contract FI6R-CT-2003-508,842.
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Mullenders, L., Atkinson, M., Paretzke, H. et al. Assessing cancer risks of low-dose radiation. Nat Rev Cancer 9, 596–604 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrc2677
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nrc2677
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