The Galician Radon Laboratory, part of the Centre for Cross disciplinary Research in Environmental Technologies (CRETUS) of the University of Santiago de Compostela (USC), has led the development of Europe’s first specific health surveillance protocol for workers exposed to radon. Commissioned by the Spanish Ministry of Health, the document establishes, for the first time, recommendations for monitoring the health of people working in places with high concentrations of this gas.
The work was coordinated by CRETUS researchers Alberto Ruano Raviña and Lucía Martín Gisbert, and involved the collaboration of scientific societies, universities, trade unions and institutions specialising in occupational health and safety. This multidisciplinary approach has brought together scientific evidence with the technical and preventive expertise needed to establish recommendations applicable to the workplace.
A pioneering protocol for occupational health protection
The Specific Health Surveillance Protocol for Workers Exposed to Radon represents a milestone in the field of radiation protection in Europe and establishes the Galician Radon Laboratory at CRETUS as a leading reference in the study and management of the risks associated with occupational exposure to this gas.
It is aimed at workers classified as being exposed to radon because they exceed the radiation dose established for this classification, set at 6 millisieverts per official year. Its recommendations provide a framework for health surveillance and guidance for occupational health professionals aimed at reducing the risk of lung cancer associated with exposure.
Among other aspects, the protocol considers factors that may increase this risk, such as smoking, exposure to carcinogenic substances and exposure to radon at home. It also does not recommend specific medical or imaging tests to detect the effects of exposure, particularly those involving ionising radiation, as there is insufficient evidence of their usefulness.
Prevention and the reduction of exposure are at the heart of the recommendations, in line with current regulations, which require radon concentrations to be measured in certain workplaces and corrective measures to be taken when elevated levels are detected.
The development of this document reinforces the role of the Galician Radon Laboratory and CRETUS-USC as leading references in the study, assessment and management of radon risk, as well as their contribution to the development of strategies to prevent environmental risks.