European Code Against Cancer - 5th edition - ultraviolet radiation, radon and cancer

Sep 23, 2026

Uploaded by Rowan

European Code Against Cancer (ECAC) provides evidence-based recommendations to help individuals and policymakers reduce cancer risk. For ECAC5, guidance on ultraviolet radiation and indoor radon exposure was updated, and additional recommendations for policymakers were added. UVR and radon are classified as carcinogenic to humans, with solar UVR driving skin cancer risk and radon gas contributing to lung cancer. The policy paper summarizes and refines these recommendations for practical implementation.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages19

Reading Time48 min

AccessFree to download

Policy Paper

European Code Against Cancer (ECAC5)

Ultraviolet radiation and indoor radon

Evidence basis and updated recommendations

Correspondence

POLICY PAPER European Code Against Cancer, 5th edition – ultraviolet radiation, radon and cancer David Ritchie 1 , Quentin Crowley2,3 , R €udiger Greinert4, Maria Albin5,6, Isabelle Baldi7,8, Dario Consonni9, Batrice Fervers 10,11, Gerard Hoek 12, Sylvia H. J. Jochems 12 , Martin R€ €oosli 13,14, Martie van Tongeren 15, Nadia Vilahur 16, Ariadna Feliu 1,17 , Hajo Zeeb 18,19, Joachim Sch €uz 1 , Erica D’Souza 1, Carolina Espina 1 and Hans Kromhout 12 1 Environmental and Lifestyle Epidemiology Branch, International Agency for Research on Cancer, Lyon, France 2 Geology, School of Natural Sciences, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland 3 Trinity Centre for the Environment, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland 4 Department of Molecular Cell Biology, Skin Cancer Center, Elbe Kliniken, Buxtehude, Germany 5 Institute for Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden 6 Department of Laboratory Medicine, Lund University, Sweden 7 Univ. Bordeaux, Inserm U1219, Bordeaux Population Health Research Centre, EPICENE Team, Bordeaux, France 8 Service Sant Travail Environment, P^ole de Sant Publique, CHU de Bordeaux, France 9 Occupational Health Unit, Fondazione IRCCS Ca’ Granda Ospedale Maggiore, Policlinico, Milan, Italy 10 Department of Prevention Cancer Environment, Centre Lon, Brard, Lyon, France 11 Inserm U1296,“Radiation: Defense, Health and Environment”, Lyon, France 12 Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences, Utrecht University, The Netherlands 13 Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH), Allschwil, Switzerland 14 University of Basel, Switzerland 15 Centre for Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Health Sciences, University of Manchester, UK 16 European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA), Bilbao, Spain 17 Department of Primary Care and Public Health, School of Public Health, Imperial College London, UK 18 Department of Prevention and Evaluation, Leibniz – Institute for Prevention Research and Epidemiology – BIPS GmbH, Bremen, Germany 19 Health Sciences Bremen, University of Bremen, Germany Keywords cancer prevention; cutaneous melanoma; European Code Against Cancer; indoor tanning devices; lung cancer; public health policy; radon; skin cancer; ultraviolet radiation The European Code Against Cancer (ECAC) provides evidence-based recommendations to help individuals reduce their cancer risk. For the 5th edition (ECAC5), recommendations on ultraviolet radiation (UVR) and indoor radon exposures were updated, and complementary recommendations for policymakers were introduced. UVR and radon are classiﬁed as carcinogenic to humans (group 1 carcinogens) in the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) Monographs. Solar UVR and, to a lesser extent, artiﬁcial forms of UVR exposure are major causes of skin cancer, while radon gas is a leading cause of lung cancer. This paper summarisesthe evidence for retaining and reﬁning these recommendations. For Abbreviations aERR, adjusted Excess Relative Risk; APC, annual percentage change; ASR, Age-Standardised Rate; BCC, basal cell carcinoma; Bq􀀁m􀀃3, becquerels per cubic metre; BSS, basic safety standard directive; CI, conﬁdence interval; CM, cutaneous melanoma; DNA, deoxyribonucleic acid; EBCP, Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan; ECAC, European Code Against Cancer; ECAC4, European Code Against Cancer, 4th edition; ECAC5, European Code Against Cancer, 5th edition; EEA, European Environment Agency; EOR, excess odds ratio; EU, European Union; EU-OSHA, European Agency for Safety and Health at Work; GBD, global burden of disease; IAEA, International Atomic Energy Agency; IARC Monographs, IARC monographs on the identiﬁcation of carcinogenic hazards to humans; IARC, International Agency for Research on Cancer; ICRP, International Commission on Radiological Protection; JRC, Joint Research Centre; LNT, linear-no-threshold; nm, nanometres; NMSC, non-melanoma skin cancer; OR, odds ratio; OSH, occupational safety an

FAQs

What does the European Code Against Cancer (ECAC) provide?

ECAC provides evidence-based recommendations for cancer prevention. It targets both individuals and policymakers with practical measures to reduce cancer risk.

How were ECAC5 recommendations updated?

ECAC5 updated recommendations on ultraviolet radiation (UVR) and indoor radon exposures. It also introduced complementary recommendations for policymakers.

Why are ultraviolet radiation and radon emphasized in ECAC5?

UVR and radon are classified as carcinogenic to humans. Solar UVR is a major cause of skin cancer, while radon gas is a leading cause of lung cancer.

Sep 23, 2026

Uploaded by Rowan