The EURALOC Project

For radiation protection purposes, it has generally been assumed that there is a threshold of dose below which no non-cancer effects arise. Early dose threshold estimates for detectable lens opacities were defined at 0.5–2 Gy after acute or 5–6 Gy after protracted exposures. Due to the heterogeneity of ophthalmological data and too short observation periods, the thresholds were reconsidered in the ICRP report 118 (2012) and reduced to 0.5 Gy. An overview will be given of epidemiological studies that prompted the change in ICRP recommendations. These studies reported excess risks of lens opacities, but could not provide statistical significant evidence of a dose threshold. The results from all these studies are difficult to compare or combine. Moreover, another point of concern is the dosimetry which was often poor. These issues limit the possibility of a quantitative synthesis of evidence for a dose-response analysis in the low dose region to confirm this new dose threshold and urged the need of a harmonised European initiative. The EURALOC project, initiated in December 2014, aims at quantifying this dose-response relationship between ionising radiation and cataract among a cohort of European interventional cardiologists.