A Silent Cause of Lung Cancer (Series 1 of 2)
By Jennifer McGohan, public health educator II
(Wampsville, NY – Jan. 2015) There may be a silent killer lurking in your home, responsible for about 14,000 deaths from lung cancer in the United States each year. You can’t see it. You can’t taste it. You can’t smell it. But radon, a naturally occurring and hazardous radioactive gas when inhaled, may be invading your home. Fortunately radon is simple to detect and can be virtually eliminated from your home.
Madison County is a known area at risk for high radon levels. The only way to know if your home has a radon problem is to test it. Radon is found in nearly all soils and in the air in varying amounts,moving up through the ground to the air above and into your home. Your home traps radon inside, where it can build up.
Any home may have a radon problem. This means new and old homes, well-sealed and drafty homes, and homes with or without basements. Your neighbor next door may not have high radon levels in their home, but you may. Local geology, construction materials, and how the home was built are among the factors that affect radon levels.
Winter is an ideal time to detect radon. Your windows are closed, your house is sealed up, and you can best determine the amount of radon that may be entering your home.
The amount of radon in the air is measured in “picocuries per liter of air” (pCi/L). The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) believes if your home tests above 4 pCi/L, you should take action to fix it. This level, 4 pCi/L was set as a reasonably achievable action level using available and affordable technology. However there is no known safe level of radon. The estimated radon risk in non-smokers exposed to 4 pCi/L over a lifetime is 7 out of 1,000 people could get lung cancer. The key is the lower the exposure, the lower the cancer risk to you and your family.
There are many kinds of low-cost “do it yourself” radon test kits available through the mail and
in some hardware stores and other retail outlets. Most test kits cost less than $10, a small expense for determining if your home is safe. Low-cost radon kits can also be purchased through the New York State Department of Health Radon Program at health.ny.gov/forms/doh-2247.pdf.
If you are buying or selling a home, you can hire a qualified tester to do the testing for you. The New York State Department of Health provides a list of qualified radon testers on their website.
If after testing your home shows high levels of radon, there are things you can do to lower your radon levels using proper techniques.
You and your family are most likely to get your greatest exposure at home, where you spend most of your time. If your living patterns change and you begin occupying a lower level of your home (such as a basement) or you do a major home renovation (adding insulation or other weatherization improvements), you should retest your home.Testing for radon is the first step toward ensuring a healthy home for you and your family—get your test kit today!
For more information about radon, radon testing, and certified radon testers, visit: