Changes Induced in the Human Respiratory Tract by Chronic Cigarette Smoking Can Reduce the Dose to the Lungs from Exposure to Radon Progeny

Honorio da Silva, E. and Davesne, E. and Bonchuk, Y. and Ratia, G. and Madas, B. and Berkovskyy, V. and Broggio, D. (2023) Changes Induced in the Human Respiratory Tract by Chronic Cigarette Smoking Can Reduce the Dose to the Lungs from Exposure to Radon Progeny. JOURNAL OF RADIOLOGICAL PROTECTION, 43 (2). No.-021509. ISSN 0952-4746 (print); 1361-6498 (online)

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Abstract

Chronic cigarette smoking leads to changes in the respiratory tract that might affect the dose received from exposure to radon progeny. In this study, changes induced by cigarette smoking in the respiratory tract were collected from the literature and used for calculation of the dose received by the lungs and organs outside the respiratory tract. Morphological and physiological parameters affected by chronic smoking were implemented in the Human Respiratory Tract Model (HRTM) proposed by the International Commission of Radiological Protection (ICRP). Smokers were found to receive lung doses 3% smaller than the ICRP reference worker (non-smoking reference adult male) in mines and 14% smaller in indoor workplaces and touristic caves. A similar dose reduction was found for the extrathoracic region of the HRTM. Conversely, kidneys, brain, and bone marrow of smokers were found to receive from 2.3- up to 3-fold of the dose received by the respective organ in the ICRP reference worker, although they remained at least 2 orders of magnitude smaller than the lung dose. These results indicate that the same radon exposure results in changes smaller than 15% in the dose received by the lungs of cigarette smokers and non-smokers.

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