Health Risks of Cesium 137

Environmental exposure to cesium-137 comes in the form of fallout from atmospheric nuclear weapons testing in the 1950s and 1960s. This fallout spread across the entire planet and moved freely through the environment. It is also among the radioisotopes present in large concentrations around the area of the 1986 Chernobyl disaster in the Ukraine.

Exposure

• Exposure comes primarily from soil and water, though the amount of cesium-137 diminishes each year due to radioactive decay. It has been detected in drinking water, but the overall effect on the general public is minimal.The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) no longer considers casual environmental exposure to cesium-137 to be a public health risk. However, acute exposure is possible in several industries as well as in the event of an accident at a nuclear power plant. Acute exposure can occur in metal scrap yards, municipal landfills or through improper handling in medical laboratories.

Cesium-137 in the Body

• Radioactive elements contaminate the body’s cells either environmentally via gamma radiation or through inhalation and ingestion. It affects the chromosomes within tissue cells, but the injury to the body is caused primarily by interfering with cell biology and breaking apart molecules. This creates free radicals, or single electrons usually present in pairs. Cells are capable of repairing the damaged genetic material, but high levels of exposure can overwhelm the system. By far the most vulnerable tissues are bone marrow and the lymph nodes.

Cesium-137 and Cancer

• Cell damage and the presence of free radicals lead to various cancers in injured areas where cesium-137 is concentrated. The story in Chernobyl was the more than 2,000 cases of thyroid cancer from radioactive iodine, but in 1986, the Soviet government estimated that cesium-137 would have an effect on long-term cancer deaths nine times greater than that of radioactive iodine.