Air pollution, radon and cancer

http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/cancer-info/healthyliving/air-pollution-radon-cancer/

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How big is the risk in the UK?

The risk depends on the level of air pollution people are regularly exposed to, but because the make-up of air pollution varies so much, it’s hard to say exactly how much the risk is affected for the people living in a certain area. 

In general, air quality guidelines and the evidence they’re based on relate to specific pollutants. And the best understood of these is PM2.5.  

The risk of developing lung cancer increases as the level of PM2.5 increases. But for PM2.5 levels at the lower end of the scale, such as those typically found in the UK, the increase in risk of lung cancer is likely to be small. PM2.5 is also found in tobacco smoke, and being a smoker exposes you to much higher levels of PM2.5 – and cancer risk – than air pollution in the UK.

A very large study of UK air pollution showed no real difference in the risk of dying from lung cancer between people living in places with the highest PM2.5 levels, compared to the lowest. But this study did find about a 10 per cent higher risk of dying from lung cancer for people with the highest levels of nitrogen dioxide, compared to the lowest. 

Air pollution isn’t only linked to lung cancer, there is also good evidence that it can increase the risk of other diseases, mainly respiratory diseases and heart disease.

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