More than 450 nuclear tests were conducted at the first Soviet nuclear test site near Semipalatinsk (Kazakhstan) between 1949 and 1989. Until present, little information is available on the local health impact of atmospheric nuclear testing in the areas adjacent to the Semipalatinsk test site. This book provides an insight into the epidemiology of radiation and cancer and investigates local fallout exposures both in Kazakhstan and in the Altai region (Russian Federation). It includes a historical overview of dosimetric and health records and new data analyses from on-going epidemiological studies. The estimation of radiation risk is discussed with respect to methodology as well as in a broader public health context.

The Author: Susanne Bauer holds a Master of Science in Environmental Studies from Berlin Technical University and a Doctor of Public Health from the University of Bielefeld. She has worked as a research associate at the Institute of Health Sciences, Berlin Technical University and at the BfS-Institute for Radiation Hygiene, Munich, where she participated in radiation epidemiology projects, funded by the European Commission and conducted in co-operation with scientists in the former Soviet Union. Her postdoctoral research at Copenhagen University is on the recent history of epidemiology.