The disaster took place five years ago. In March 2011, a tsunami devastated the region of Fukushima (Japan), causing a serious nuclear accident. Since then, cases of cancer, in particular thyroid, have been observed in children. The parents of 115 young victims have come out of the shadows to demand recognition of the link between the nuclear disaster and these diseases. By launching this movement, they want to break the silence and isolation they suffer from for fear of stigma. At present, screenings conducted by the authorities on 300,000 children and adolescents have detected 115 proven cases of thyroid cancer and 50 probable cases.
Uncertainty about the link between radioactivity and cancer
The relationship between the levels of radioactivity recorded in Fukushima province and cases of thyroid cancer has still not been clearly demonstrated, and scientists are divided. On the one hand, Japanese specialists believe that the probability that the discovered thyroid cancers are linked to the nuclear accident is low. On the other hand, studies claim that this link is real. This is particularly the case of a report published this month of March 2016 by two non-governmental organizations (American NGOs), Physicians for social responsibility and International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War. Scientists from these NGOs explain that the entire Japanese territory was exposed to levels of radioactivity above the limits and that as a result, the increased risk of cancer on the island would be 9,600 to 66,000 cases.
>> To read also:
Thyroid cancer: too many unnecessary ablations
Thyroid nodules: when to operate
Thyroid cancer: a dog trained to spot the disease
Nuclear risk: iodine tablets distributed to the population from 2016
