National Academies Press: OpenBook

Analysis of Cancer Risks in Populations Near Nuclear Facilities: Phase 1 (2012)

Chapter: Appendix L: Letter Template to State Vital Statistics Offices

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Suggested Citation:"Appendix L: Letter Template to State Vital Statistics Offices." National Research Council. 2012. Analysis of Cancer Risks in Populations Near Nuclear Facilities: Phase 1. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13388.
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L

Letter Template to State Vital Statistics Offices

Re: Committee on Analysis of Cancer Risks in Populations near Nuclear Facilities: Request for information on availability and release of birth records and mechanisms of linkage with cancer registries and death records.

Dear Director:

I am writing to request information about your office’s availability of birth records and the release criteria of those data for research purposes. Information about the accessibility of data will be used in support of a study being carried out by the National Academy of Sciences Committee on Analysis of Cancer Risks in Populations near Nuclear Facilities, at the request of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The Statement of Task related to the study is attached.

I would appreciate information on the following issues:

Census tract level:

  • Year from which aggregated birth records data are available; release criteria for those data, and variables that can be released (e.g., age, race/ethnicity, gender, date of birth, number of siblings of index child).

Individual birth level:

  • Year from which individual birth records are available, release criteria for those records, and variables that can be released (e.g., age, race/ethnicity, gender, date of birth, number of siblings, address and telephone number of parents at birth of the index child).
Suggested Citation:"Appendix L: Letter Template to State Vital Statistics Offices." National Research Council. 2012. Analysis of Cancer Risks in Populations Near Nuclear Facilities: Phase 1. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13388.
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Policies and mechanisms:

  • For review and approval of projects aiming to link birth, cancer incidence, and mortality data within the state and outside the state; matching criteria on which linkage is based.
  • For contact of individuals identified via birth records, especially minors and/or their families.

We would also like to know about additional information that your office may collect for individual births, such as birth defects reported after the birth certificate is filed, and any other information you think might be relevant to a national study of pediatric cancer incidence within a birth cohort of children living near nuclear facilities.

Any information you provide to us by December 15, 2011 will be considered in support of the study. Please note that all written information that you provide will be included in the Public Access File for this study.

If you have questions about this request or would prefer to respond by phone I would be happy to contact you. I can be reached at email: kcrowley@nas.edu or phone: 202 334 3066.

                                                                                                                                 Sincerely,
                                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                 Kevin Crowley
Study Director
Suggested Citation:"Appendix L: Letter Template to State Vital Statistics Offices." National Research Council. 2012. Analysis of Cancer Risks in Populations Near Nuclear Facilities: Phase 1. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13388.
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Page 397
Suggested Citation:"Appendix L: Letter Template to State Vital Statistics Offices." National Research Council. 2012. Analysis of Cancer Risks in Populations Near Nuclear Facilities: Phase 1. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13388.
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Page 398
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In the late 1980s, the National Cancer Institute initiated an investigation of cancer risks in populations near 52 commercial nuclear power plants and 10 Department of Energy nuclear facilities (including research and nuclear weapons production facilities and one reprocessing plant) in the United States. The results of the NCI investigation were used a primary resource for communicating with the public about the cancer risks near the nuclear facilities. However, this study is now over 20 years old. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission requested that the National Academy of Sciences provide an updated assessment of cancer risks in populations near USNRC-licensed nuclear facilities that utilize or process uranium for the production of electricity.

Analysis of Cancer Risks in Populations near Nuclear Facilities: Phase 1 focuses on identifying scientifically sound approaches for carrying out an assessment of cancer risks associated with living near a nuclear facility, judgments about the strengths and weaknesses of various statistical power, ability to assess potential confounding factors, possible biases, and required effort. The results from this Phase 1 study will be used to inform the design of cancer risk assessment, which will be carried out in Phase 2. This report is beneficial for the general public, communities near nuclear facilities, stakeholders, healthcare providers, policy makers, state and local officials, community leaders, and the media.

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