Psychosomatic Effects From Low Dose Radiation

Historical assessment of radiation effects at low doses (below 0.2 Sv) are generally the result of back extrapolation from higher doses which are known to have a linear relation between risk and dose. There are multiple counter examples and some literature argues that either a threshold, nonlinear or even a beneficial effect can occur from radiation below these doses. The common theme found in all of these studies stem from the traditional approach of correlating disease rates to stimulus and then effectively curve fitting the result to the origin. What has not been considered in general are the personal stress levels of the exposed individuals due to fear of cancer from low doses. The increased levels of cortisol due to the psychological stress from to fear or depression has been shown in the literature to increase cancer probability. To the extent individuals were fearful from a prior radiation exposure would then give rise to elevated cancer based only on the fear-based stress rather than a fundamental radiogenic mechanism. If the population under any epidemiological study is aware of a potential historical exposures (no matter how small) and have then lived under stress from fear or depression due to that exposure, the psychosomatic effects will bias the epidemiology accordingly and so should be quantified and accounted for as done with the effects of smoking.