In plain language
In about 146,000 US radiologic technologists, overall mortality was below the general population, but breast cancer and some leukemia deaths were higher among those who started work before 1940-1950, when occupational exposures were greater. This is an association, not proof of cause.
At a glance
- Type of study
- Original research, Prospective cohort study
- Who was studied
- Radiologic technologists
- Size
- n = 146,022 radiologic technologists
- Where
- United States
- Topics
- Cancer riskBreast cancer
- Summary based on
- the abstract
What it found
Breast cancer mortality was nearly three times higher among technologists first employed before 1940 than among those first employed in 1960 or later, and risk declined with more recent first employment.
Key figures: Relative risk (RR) = 2.92, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.22-7.00; p-trend = 0.002
Breast cancer and combined leukemia risks rose with longer duration of work as a technologist before 1950.
Key figures: p-trend = 0.018 breast cancer; p-trend = 0.05 leukemias
Overall mortality and cancer mortality in the cohort were lower than in the US general population.
Key figures: Standardized mortality ratio (SMR) = 0.76 all causes; SMR = 0.82 all cancers
All-cancer mortality was higher, though not statistically significant, among those first employed before 1940, with a declining trend by year of first employment.
Key figures: RR = 1.28, 95% CI = 0.93-1.69; p-trend = 0.04
Combined acute lymphocytic, acute myeloid and chronic myeloid leukemia mortality was imprecisely elevated among those first employed before 1950.
Key figures: RR = 1.64, 95% CI = 0.42-6.31
Limits to keep in mind
Observational cohort that uses employment era and duration as exposure proxies rather than individual dose; relative-risk analyses are limited to the 90,305 questionnaire respondents and several estimates have wide confidence intervals. Healthy-worker effect likely influences comparisons with the general population.
Related research summaries
- Cancer Risks in U.S. Radiologic Technologists Working with Fluoroscopically Guided Interventional Procedures, 1994-2008 (2024, Prospective cohort study)
- Occupational hazards in cardiac electrophysiology: Insights from an HRS member survey (2025, Cross-sectional survey)
- Radiation in the Orthopedic Operating Room: What We Know, What We Do, and What Needs Attention (2025, Narrative review)
- SCAI Multi-Society Position Statement on Occupational Health Hazards (2020, Guideline or consensus statement)
- Occupational hazard of fluoroscopy: An invisible threat to orthopedic surgeons (2021, Cross-sectional survey)
How this summary was made
ORSIF prepared this summary with AI assistance from the abstract of the paper. A program then checked that the passage supporting each finding appears word for word in that source. A person has not yet reviewed each summary, so read the original before relying on a number. ORSIF summarizes research and does not endorse any product or company. Report a problem with this summary.
Prepared November 3, 2026.