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Every year there are 21,000 cases of cancer deaths blamed on radon.

January is Radon Awareness Month. Pennsylvania's Department of Environmental Protection wants you to know the dangers of this radioactive gas.

Allentown's Jon Ramella is living the American dream.

Less than a month ago he became a first time homeowner.

"I like it so far. [It's] a little overwhelming but exciting too," Ramella said.

Before moving in, Jon already had an unwanted and potentially deadly house guest: high levels of radon.

"A little nervous because it's not the thing you want," said Ramella.

Radon is naturally occurring radioactive gas.

Watch this news segment: http://www.newschannel34.com/news/local/story/Shale-Radioactivity/HmUSX-Bi9EyOdsidhXt5mw.cspx?autoplay=1

Both Hang and Kurkoski say they plan to participate in rallies scheduled by each side for outside the Forum before the hearings begin. Wednesday night, New York Residents Against Drilling is presenting a lecture on shale radioactivity at BU.

Physicist Marvin Resnikoff has studied the effects of radioactivity that is released during the fracking process. "If you breathe in the material, like radon gas, you can get cancer. You can get lung cancer from radon gas and you can get other cancers from the hot pipes themselves."

Resnikoff's lecture begins at 7:30 Wednesday evening in the Old University Union Hall on the BU campus.

After years of weighing in on issues like secondhand tobacco smoke and radon exposure, Dr. Jonathan Samet is accustomed to controversy.

And last week, Dr. Samet, a University of Southern California physician and epidemiologist, found himself at the center of debate again as chairman of a World Health Organization committee ruling on the health effects of cellphone use. The International Agency for Research on Cancer, which consisted of 31 scientists from 14 countries, concluded that cellphones are “possibly carcinogenic,” putting the devices in the same category as about 260 chemicals, pesticides and other substances, including coffee, that might lead to certain cancers.

Today's reported link between cell-phone use and brain cancer is the latest salvo in a debate about whether gabbing on your cell phone poses health risks. But there's little argument about the health threats of radon, lead, arsenic, volatile organic compounds, and other hazards that lurk in most homes. Here are some tips—and products from Consumer Reports tests—that can help you find and conquer those issues.

This year, Western Kentucky University (WKU) Department of Environment, Health and Safety reached new heights in raising awareness during National Radon Action Month – by garnering media attention to spread the word about the risk of radon. The department’s Radon Grant Coordinator Anita Britt partnered with the Barren River District Health Department, a local radon mitigation professional and the Bowling Green Daily News newspaper to run a personal story about radon, titled “Radon a Silent Danger.” The article – written by Pam Cassady and published on Jan. 17, 2011 – described a personal story of Lisa Murrell, a local nonsmoker who was diagnosed with lung cancer (pictured above).

ATLANTA -- Lung cancer kills thousands of Americans every year. Smoking, radon, and secondhand smoke are the leading causes of lung cancer.

Although lung cancer can be treated, the survival rate is one of the lowest for those with cancer.

From the time of diagnosis, between 11 and 15 percent of those afflicted will live beyond five years, depending upon demographic factors. In many cases lung cancer can be prevented.

Radon is a form of ionizing radiation and a proven carcinogen.

EPA estimates that about 20,000 lung cancer deaths each year in the U.S. are radon-related. 85% of radon-induced lung cancer die within 4-5 years of diagnosis.

Lung cancer is the only known effect on human health from exposure to radon in air.

Two studies show definitive evidence of an association between residential radon exposure and lung cancer.

The two studies, a North American study and a European study, both combined data from several previous residential studies.

Every day, everyone on earth is bathed in low-level radiation from cosmic rays, radon gas and other sources. Many people also undergo medical X-rays and airport scans. How much is too much?

Don’t worry too much about the hint of radiation reaching U.S. shores from the damaged nuclear reactors in Japan, experts say.

So far, it’s much less than we’d get from a chest X-ray.

But consider this: Every day, all day long, we’re bathed in low levels of radiation — cosmic rays from outer space, radon in our houses, uranium deposits in the soil, radio signals from every AM and FM station in range, airport full-body scanners, dental X-rays, cellphones, even tiny hints lingering from the A-bomb tests of the 1940s and ‘50s.

And remember that radiation is cumulative. Most scientists agree there’s no such thing as a harmless dose.

Now relax. It’s less scary than it sounds.

Watch this WHSV news segment.

Radon is something you can't see or smell but, you need to know about to keep your family safe.

It's a naturally occurring radioactive gas that is likely in your home and specialists say one in three homes in the Valley have unsafe levels.

The rocky soil in the area makes homes, businesses and apartment buildings more susceptible.

The radon comes from decaying uranium and thorium, which exist naturally in the soil and rocks.

Continuously breathing in unsafe levels of radon is the equivalent of smoking numerous cigarettes per day.

Keith Micallef, the owner of Accurate Home Inspections and a Certified Radon Specialist, says he has seen more people testing.

Watch this video

(KYTX) - You don't have to be a smoker to develop lung cancer.

The second leading cause of this killer could be hiding in your house and you might not even know it.

You can't see it or smell it, but Radon could be lurking in your home right now.

Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas.

Radon specialist Terry Howell says it can accumulate in both old and new homes, also in office buildings, high-rises, and schools.

And exposure to radon can pose a serious health risk.

Howell says, "Most people think that smoking is primarily the cause of lung cancer and they're right, but Radon seems to be the second most common cause."

Being a smoker increases the risk of cancer from Radon, because smokers' lungs are already compromised.

And just because your neighbor doesn't have radon in their home doesn't mean you're in the clear.

November is Lung Cancer Awareness month. Lung cancer kills more women than any other cancer – nearly 200 each day. Most die within a year of diagnosis. Yet lung cancer remains the “hidden” women’s cancer – little known and rarely discussed. It is the least funded cancer in terms of research dollars per death of all the major cancers.

It’s one of the only cancers where patients are routinely blamed for causing their condition. But despite lung cancer’s strong association with tobacco use, one in five women who develop the disease has never smoked.

What’s the Difference?

Lung cancer develops differently in women and men. There are sex differences in many areas of the disease, including risk factors, clinical characteristics, progression and length of survival.

For example:
• Women who have never smoked appear to be at greater risk for developing lung cancer than men who have never smoked.
• Women tend to develop lung cancer at younger ages than men.