Plutonium and lung cancer

The National Plutonium Workers Study surveys workers at three major U.S. Department of Energy facilities who were exposed to Pu and other radioactive substances. The purpose of the study is to measure adverse health effects, if any, which arise from exposure. Most exposures occur from inhalation of highly insoluble forms of plutonium oxide, and from animal studies, lung cancer is the most likely outcome. To date, the studies have shown that lung cancer mortality among highly exposed persons is surprisingly low when compared to national averages.