Preface

«Radiation and Risk», 2026, vol. 35, No. 2, pp.6-6

The Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident occurred on April 26, 1986. Forty years later, it con-tinues to impact the lives of people, animals, and plants in the contaminated areas. The consequences of the disaster are also felt by the liquidators who worked on its elimination. The accident resulted in colossal environmental, medical, psychological, and socioeconomic difficulties for residents in the contaminated zone. In the years since the accident, the primary source of information on the health dynamics of exposed citizens and the medical and radiological consequences of the Chernobyl accident in the Russian Federation has been the National Radiation and Epidemiological Registry (NRER), established in 1986 by decision of the Government of the Soviet Union at the Research Institute of Radiation Protection of the USSR Academy of Medical Sciences in Obninsk City. In this journal issue, the first seven scientific articles are devoted to the results of long-term monitoring of the dynamics and prognosis of health indicators in individuals exposed to radiation. The presented data demonstrate that the problem of minimizing the medical and radiological consequences of the Chernobyl accident and improving the effectiveness of medical care for exposed Russian citizens, particularly those in high-risk groups, will remain relevant not only in the coming years but also for the long term. The unprecedented accident gave a powerful impetus to the development of such scientific fields as low-dose radiobiology, retrospective dosimetry, and the medicine and biology of the long-term effects of radiation and the combined effects of ionizing radiation and other factors. This issue presents the results of medical, biological, and environmental studies by teams of authors from various scientific centers in Russia. Their substantiated conclusions highlight the need to maintain efforts to continue scientific research and implement the findings in practice to further minimize the consequences of the radiation accident and provide targeted assistance to affected populations and the environment.

Full-text article (in Russian)