Groundbreaking research on radon levels in rural Alberta is a major cause for concern in southern Alberta, according to a Calgary scientist.

Dr. Aaron Goodarzi, director of the Robson DNA Science Centre and lead of science communication for the University of Calgary’s Charbonneau Cancer Institute, has dedicated much of his decades-long career to studying radons.

"The Prairies, absolutely southern Alberta being part of the Prairies, Okotoks, the surrounding municipal district of Foothills, is indeed one of the largest radon-exposed parts of this world," said Goodarzi. "Now, if you take Canada as a whole, we're easily in the top five, and if you look within Canada, it's sort of a three-way tie between the Prairies, the Atlantic region and the North.

"So, if you think of the Prairies, tied with Atlantic and Northern Canada as the highest in this country, and you look at the rural communities as the highest among those, I would say that the areas surrounding Okotoks would be easily classified as one of the highest observed in terms of what we understand at this time on this planet."

Goodarzi and his team have been studying radon levels in Canada, with a recent focus on rural communities.

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A new multidisciplinary study including researchers at the University of Calgary shows that people who act quickly to test for and mitigate radon gas in their homes are at a much lower risk of developing lung cancer long term.

The study found swift action is key in avoiding preventable illness. In new work conducted by a collaborative team of Canadian psychologists, biologists and cancer experts, researchers found that our behaviour matters far more to lifetime exposure to cancer-causing radiation than previously believed. While some of these behavioural and lifestyle factors can be easily altered, others represent major challenges.

The study, published in the journal Scientific Reports at Nature.com, found that people who act quickly to learn about, test for, and reduce exposure to radioactive radon gas in their homes could reduce their lifetime risk of lung cancer by as much as 40 per cent, compared to those who do not.

In extreme cases, behavioural differences meant a difference of decades of exposure to radiation levels exceeding those normally only seen after a nuclear accident. Researchers found that some Canadians are absorbing more than 100 millisieverts — the unit used to measure radiation doses — of radiation to their lungs per year just from the air of their own homes.

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A multi-disciplinary team of Canadian architects and cancer researchers has found average radon gas levels in new homes in Canada are 467 per cent higher than in Sweden.

In the study, published in the journal Scientific Reports at Nature.com, researchers predict that without intervention, by 2050 the average radon level of a new Canadian home will increase another 25 per cent over current levels, which are already third highest in the world.

"It is important to acknowledge that prevalent, unsafe radon exposure is a relatively recent, human-made problem rooted in the design of our built environment," says Joshua Taron, the associate dean (research and innovation) and associate professor with the School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape at the University of Calgary. "Canadian construction and design practices in the last 40 years have produced residential, commercial and industrial buildings that capture, contain and concentrate radon to unnatural and unsafe levels."

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As awareness increases about the health danger of radon gas, more people are making the decision to test their homes for the deadly gas. A University of Calgary-led study finds the only reliable way to measure exposure to radon gas is with a long-term testing kit, which takes readings within the home for 90 or more days.

“Radon gas levels can fluctuate wildly day to day,” says Dr. Aaron Goodarzi, PhD, assistant professor in the departments of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology and Oncology and member of the Arnie Charbonneau Cancer Institute at the Cumming School of Medicine (CSM).  “Short-term tests can give a false sense of alarm, or worse, a false sense of security as they cannot precisely predict long-term exposure.”

Researchers placed two test kits, a short-term (five-day) and long-term (90-day) in the same homes. Tests were conducted during summer and winter months. Findings showed the short-term kits were imprecise up to 99 percent of the time when compared to a long term test. 

Radon is a known carcinogen. Health Canada lists radon as the number one cause of lung cancer in non-smokers. The gas is naturally occurring, colourless, and odourless. It can accumulate to unnaturally high and dangerous levels in homes. Health Canada has promoted the use of long-term testing kits for some time.

Read the full article here and the full press release here.

Findings are published in Scientific Reports.

This research was supported by the Alberta Real Estate Foundation, Alberta Cancer Foundation, Health Canada, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Robson DNA Science Centre Fund at the Charbonneau Cancer Institute.

Dr. Aaron Goodarzi, PhD, holds the Canada Research Chair for Radiation Exposure disease. Evict Radon represents a confederation of Canadian Scholars with expertise in radon biology, architecture, population health, geology and communications.

Learn more about the Evict Radon campaign, and sign up for research study radon kits at https://evictradon.org/.