Fukushima plant workers to be eligible for free cancer exam

Tokyo, Sep 22: The Japan health ministry has decided that workers engaged in crisis control at the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant should be screened for cancer every year for free from fiscal 2012 if they have been exposed to accumulated radiation of over 100 millisieverts.

As of Sep 15, 99 workers had been exposed to over 100 millisieverts of radiation and 309 workers to amounts somewhere between over 50 millisieverts and 100 millisieverts, according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.

The ministry's decision is based on a draft report by its panel which has been debating the long-term effects on the health of the Fukushima plant workers.

PTI (KYODO)