Leukaemia near La Hague nuclear plant; and replies

An article published in 1997 finding associations between childhood leukaemia and the use of beaches around La Hague nuclear fuel reprocessing plant by pregnant women and children has prompted six letters about this study. Three of these letters criticize the study suggesting that a selection bias could have been introduced into the study, the study design regarding cases and controls is questionable and insufficient attention has been given to the scientific content of their results. The fourth letter compares the results of a similar case-control study preferred in Britain. The fifth letter reports a connection between low level radiation from nuclear plants in Switzerland and malformation in leafbugs. The sixth letter is from the author of the study who attempts to provide additional information to convince the authors of the first two letters that selection or recall biases are unlikely. (UK)