[Knowledge about radon and its associated risk perception in France]

Radon exposure is a major environmental risk in health. It remains badly known by the general population. It is the second cause of lung cancer, after tobacco smoking. The aim of this cross-sectional general population survey was to describe radon exposure risk knowledge and the socioeconomic factors related to this knowledge.

The Cancer Barometer survey 2010 questioned the French population about its knowledge of radon as such and as health risk factor. This survey was a two-stage random sampling with computer-assisted telephone interview that was performed from April 3, 2010 to August 7, 2010 on a sample of 3,359 people aged 15 to 75 years old.

Among people aged 15 to 75 years old, only one in five knows that radon is a natural gas coming from the ground. This knowledge is more frequent among people living in an area that is directly concerned by radon, among men and increases with age, with the level of education and the level of income. Radon risk remains still widely underestimated by the general public, including in areas concerned by this risk. When people were confronted with radon exposure, few intended to remedy by improving their home.

The success of prevention initiatives implies the support and the collaboration of various national and local actors. To improve their impact for the prevention of lung cancers, it could be more effective to couple these actions with prevention messages on tobacco.