Source: ICAN
Long-term effects
The incidence of leukaemia among survivors increased noticeably five to six years after the bombings, and about a decade later survivors began suffering from thyroid, breast, lung and other cancers at higher than normal rates.
For solid cancers, the added risks related to radiation exposure continue to increase throughout the lifespan of survivors even to this day, almost seven decades after the bombings.
Women exposed to the bombings while they were pregnant experienced higher rates of miscarriage and deaths among their infants.
Children exposed to radiation in their mother’s womb were more likely to have intellectual disabilities and impaired growth, as well as increased risk of developing cancer.
Shigeko Sasamori’s story
