Title: An estimate of the cancer risk due to inhalation and ingestion of radon from internal and external materials used for newborns in Iraq

Authors: Ban Hussein Ali; Ali Abid Abojassim

Addresses: Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, University of Kufa, Al-Najaf, Iraq ' Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, University of Kufa, Al-Najaf, Iraq

Abstract: In this work, ²²²Rn was measured in materials for a newborn in Najaf Governorate, using a CR-39 detector. Radiological parameters, including the annual effective dose (AED), lifetime cancer risk (ELCR), and lung cancer incidence (LCC), were estimated. The results show that the range values of ²²²Rn concentrations, AED_inhalation, and LCC×10⁻⁶ in the external materials samples were 14.43-57.72 Bq/m³, 0.055-0.218 mSv/y, and 0.98-3.93, respectively. For internal materials, the range values of ²²²Rn, AED_ingestion, and ELCR×10⁻⁶ were 8.66-36.08 Bq/m³, 0.0004-0.577 µSv/y, and 0.001-2.22, respectively. The average values of external and internal materials were 23.62 Bq/m³ and 20.65 Bq/m³, respectively. The global safe limits of the world due to inhalation and ingestion of ²²²Rn, according to the WHO, UNSCEAR, and ICRP, are ≤ 1 mSv/y and 0.1 mSv/y, respectively. Therefore, the use of the studied samples by newborns in this study does not lead to significant changes in the internal effective dose.

Keywords: radon concentrations; cancer risk; newborn materials; CR-39 detector; Al-Najaf pharmacies.

DOI: 10.1504/IJNEST.2026.154198

International Journal of Nuclear Energy Science and Technology, 2026 Vol.18 No.3, pp.226 - 241

Received: 08 Aug 2025
Accepted: 27 Feb 2026
Published online: 16 Jun 2026 *

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