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ORRHES Meeting,
February 11, 2002
A RESOLUTION TO ORRHES RECOMMENDING THAT THE MANGANO
PAPER NOT BE USED AS A BASIS FOR THE OAK RIDGE RESERVATION (ORR) PUBLIC
HEALTH ASSESSMENT
WHEREAS, the Oak Ridge Reservation Health Effects Subcommittee (ORRHES)
and the Public Health Work Group (PHAWG) have diligently evaluated the
quality of the research paper by J. J. Mangano entitled, "Cancer
Mortality near Oak Ridge, Tennessee" (Int. J. of Health Services,
V. 24 #3, 1994, p. 521), and
WHEREAS, the paper was rated inadequate by the PHAWG in its general characteristics
as an epidemiology paper in such matters as but not limited to: 1) failure
to measure or estimate actual radiation exposures to the selected population,
thus not drawing attention to the fact an exposure increase of one percent
above background would have to account for a 30 % increase in cancer mortality,
2) failure to correct for a wide range of confounder effects known to
exist, and, 3) failure to discuss that the alleged increases in cancer
mortality rates in the ORR vicinity were accompanied by a similar increase
in much or the eastern United States (see National Cancer Institute, Atlas
of Cancer Mortality in the United States 1950-1994, p. 11), and
WHEREAS, the paper also received an inadequate rating in site specific
matters, such as but not limited to: 1) failure to use appropriate wind
data, such as, existing ORR wind rose information, 2) failure to reconcile
the alleged patterns in mortality rate increases with, not only the absence
of a corresponding pattern in the mortality data itself, but also with
the opposite pattern i.e., lower rates in Anderson and Roane counties,
3) failure to place the ORR facilities in the proper counties, and, 4)
failure to support assumptions of local conditions with data or citations,
be it therefore
RESOLVED, that, the ORRHES recommend to the Agency for Toxic Substances
and Disease Registry (ATSDR) that the Mangano paper is not an adequate,
science-based explanation of any alleged anomalies in cancer mortality
rates of the off-site public, and be it further
RESOLVED, that the ORRHES recommend to the ATSDR that the paper fails
to establish that radiation exposure from the ORR are the cause of any
such alleged anomalies of cancer mortality rates in the general public,
and be it further
RESOLVED, that the ORRHES recommend to the ATSDR that the Mangano paper
be excluded from consideration in the ORR Public Health Assessment process.
Approved: ____________________________________
Date:__________________
Kowetha A. Davidson, Ph.D., D.A.B.T.
Chair, ORRHES
Epidemiology Study Evaluation
Matrix (PDF)
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