The impact of the probability of causation on the radiation protection program

Although the probability of causation approach is the only scientific basis on which a given cancer can be judged to be causally related to a given exposure, the impact of this concept on the radiation safety program could be counter-productive. As health physicists, the practices and the concepts we employ have been developed to protect the worker. Effective dose equivalent and committed dose equivalent are protective concepts but useless for probability of causation analysis. Perhaps extensive records will be the only way that good radiation protection and probability of causation analysis can coexist.