28 Feb 2013

GENEVA / WHO – FUKUSHIMA DAIICHI

A comprehensive assessment by international experts on the health risks associated with the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant (NPP) disaster inJapanconcluded that, for the general population inside and outside ofJapan, the predicted risks are low. WHO / FILE

Posted at: February 28, 2013 4:50 pm

Duration: 02:30

Available in: SD

DOWNLOAD

Full script

STORY: GENEVA / WHO - FUKUSHIMA DAIICHI
TRT: 2.30
SOURCE: WHO / IAEA
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: 28 FEBRUARY 2013, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND / FILE

FILE – 2011, WHO HEADQUARTERS, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND

1. Wide shot, exterior WHO Headquarters

28 FEBRUARY 2013, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND

2. Tilt up from report to press conference
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Maria Neira, WHO Director of Public Health and Environment:
"The purpose of this report was not to say how many deaths, or how many cancers or deaths caused by cancer are expected, the purpose of this report was saying: looking at the exposure in the doses to which people have been exposed, what is their risk that we can expect as an increase over the baseline one, or the so-called natural one. And I think this is more human than trying to predict how many people will die from cancer. The reason why we were not using cancer mortality figures, rather incidence is because, as you know, most of the cancers can now be treated and therefore there will not be mortality associated, so we prefer to look at the incidence, because this will collect better data and more comprehensive and not just to look at mortality because then you will be missing incidence of certain cancers that will not cause mortality."
4. Cutaway, journalists
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Dr Angelika Tritscher, Acting-Director, WHO Department of Food Safety and Zoonoses:
"What the report shows is that for the most part of Japan there is no increase cancer risk expected as a consequence of the Fukushima accident. What it does show is that in the areas most affected in the Fukushima prefecture there may be an increased risk of cancer and in particular of thyroid cancer and leukemia. What we estimated was, what this incremental increase of additional cancer risk is above the background risk that already exists in the population. So this report provides some level of reassurance to a big part of the population in Japan and it helps really focus on the areas and the population of biggest concern and it helps to target monitoring and public health actions and interventions."

FILE - 25 JULY, FUKUSHIMA, JAPAN

6. Various shots, Fukushima nuclear power plant following the earthquake and tsunami of 2011

STORYLINE:

A comprehensive assessment by international experts on the health risks associated with the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant (NPP) disaster in Japan has concluded that, for the general population inside and outside of Japan, the predicted risks are low and no observable increases in cancer rates above baseline rates are anticipated.

The report launched today (28 February) at the World Health Organizations (WHO) Headquarters in Geneva, found that that no discernible increase in health risk from Fukushima event was suspected outside of Japan. The assessment estimates that the lifetime risk for some cancers might be somewhat elevated above the suspected baselines rates in certain age and sex groups who are the most expected to be affected and in the areas most affected.

Maria Neira, WHO's Director of Public Health and Environment said at the launch that the purpose of the report was not to establish how many deaths, or how many cancers or deaths caused by cancer were expected in the future, but to look at the exposure in the doses to which people had been exposed, and what were the risks parting from there, "And I think this is more human than trying to predict how many people will die from cancer".

The reason why the report does not concentrate on cancer mortality figures, rather incidence was, according to WHO, because most of the cancers can now be treated and therefore there will not be mortality associated.

Meanwhile Angelika Tritscher, Acting-Director of WHO's Department of Food Safety and Zoonoses explained during an interview that what the report showed was that for the most part of Japan there was "no increase cancer risk expected as a consequence of the Fukushima accident".

What it does show, she said, "is that in the areas most affected in the Fukushima prefecture there may be an increased risk of cancer and in particular of thyroid cancer and leukemia."

In terms of specific cancers, for people in the most contaminated location, according to the report the estimated increased risks over what would normally be expected are: all solid cancers - around 4 per cent in females exposed as infants; breast cancer - around 6 per cent in females exposed as infants; Leukaemia, around 7 per cent in males exposed as infants; and Thyroid cancer, up to 70 percent in females exposed as infants.
 
For people in the second most contaminated location of Fukushima Prefecture, the estimated risks are approximately one-half of those in the location with the highest doses.
 
The almost-200-page document further notes that the radiation doses from the damaged nuclear power plant are not expected to cause an increase in the incidence of miscarriages, stillbirths and other physical and mental conditions that can affect babies born after the accident.