Cancer risk assessment for radiation exposure and smoking: An analysis based on atomic bomb survivor data

Studies have shown that 30–50% of cancers are preventable by avoiding modifiable risk factors, including radiation exposure and smoking. The goal of this paper is to utilize Poisson regression models with different effect response functions of factors to investigate the relationship between incidence rates of various cancers and factors. Our findings reveal that for female-related cancers, the radiation-induced excess relative risk exhibits an upward curvature at high doses. For gastrointestinal cancers, smoking has a much greater impact on tumor risk than radiation among males, while radiation has a greater impact on tumor risk than smoking among females. Additionally, the relationship between smoking and tumor risk shows a double-humped downward curve for gastrointestinal cancers. The dose-response relationship for male gastrointestinal cancers is linear, with an excess relative risk of 0.38 per[Formula: see text]Gy (95% CI: [0.17, 0.59]) at an attained age of 70 after exposure at age 30. However, in females, the dose-response relationship is linear for doses less than 1[Formula: see text]Gy but shows a downward curvature for doses exceeding 1[Formula: see text]Gy. Collectively, these findings elucidate sex- and organ-specific nuances in radiation- and smoking-induced cancer risk, thereby providing novel insights to inform the development of precision public health strategies for cancer prevention.