NRC SPONSORING NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES EFFORT TO CARRY 

OUT PILOT OF CANCER RISK STUDY

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff is implementing a National Academy of 

Sciences committee’s recommendations to perform a pilot study of cancer risk in populations 

around six U.S. nuclear power plant sites and a nuclear fuel facility. The NRC is asking the 

Academy to carry out this effort, which will help the agency determine whether to extend the 

study to the remaining U.S. reactor and certain fuel cycle sites.

The pilot effort, described in the staff’s update (SECY-12-0136) to the agency’s five 

Commissioners, will examine each of the seven sites with two types of epidemiological studies. 

The first will examine multiple cancer types in populations living near the facilities; the second 

will be a case-control study of cancers in children born near the facilities. The six reactor sites 

are:

Dresden Nuclear Power Station, Morris, Ill. 

Millstone Power Station, Waterford, Conn.

Oyster Creek Nuclear Generating Station, Forked River, N.J.

Haddam Neck (decommissioned), Haddam Neck, Conn.

Big Rock Point Nuclear Power Plant (decommissioned), Charlevoix, Mich.

San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, San Clemente, Calif.

The Dresden, Millstone and San Onofre sites include both operating reactors and a 

decommissioned reactor. The pilot effort will also study Nuclear Fuel Services in Erwin, Tenn. 

The Academy recommended these sites because they provide a good sampling of facilities with 

different operating histories, population sizes, and levels of complexity in data retrieval from the 

relevant state cancer registries. 

The NRC will work with the Academy to begin the pilot study process in the next three 

months. The NRC staff expects the effort will continue at least into 2014 and cost approximately 

$2 million. The Academy will work with interested parties near the sites prior to gathering 

information and beginning the necessary analyses.

The NRC/Academy effort’s overall aim is to provide a modern version of the 1990 U.S. 

National Institutes of Health – National Cancer Institute (NCI) report, “Cancer in Populations 

NRC NEWS

U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

Office of Public Affairs Telephone: 301/415-8200

Washington, D.C. 20555-0001

E-mail: opa.resource@nrc.gov Site: www.nrc.gov

Blog: http://public-blog.nrc-gateway.gov

No. 12-117 October 23, 2012
Living Near Nuclear Facilities.” The NRC has used the 1990 NCI report as a primary resource 

when communicating with the public about cancer mortality risk in counties that contain or are 

adjacent to certain nuclear power facilities.

In Phase 1 of the study, the Academy developed proposed methods for examining the 

most up-to-date cancer information in populations living near NRC-licensed nuclear facilities. 

The pilot studies will determine the feasibility of using these methods on the balance of the 

remaining operating nuclear power facilities and certain fuel cycle facilities in phase 2 of the 

project.

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