NEW research led by an Oxford professor shows that one in 20 deaths from lung cancer in England is caused by radon gas in homes.

The naturally occurring radioactive gas, which is colourless and odourless, affects homes in several parts of the country including north Oxfordshire. The main area at risk is on the border with Northamptonshire, although west Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse also show traces.

Prof Sarah Darby, a principal scientist at the Imperial Cancer Research Fund's epidemiology unit at Oxford, led a team which found a direct link between radon levels and the cancer.

Prof Darby said studies of uranium miners in Eastern Europe found they were 20 times more likely to develop lung cancer.

Her research was to see if the link was still relevant when the gas was found in much lower levels in the home.

Research was carried out at five centres in Devon and Cornwall, where radon levels are among the highest in the country.

It was based on studying the background of 982 people under 75 with lung cancer who had lived in the two counties for at least 30 years.

Last year, West Oxfordshire District Council offered free radon tests to 800 council tenants in Chipping Norton, Charlbury, Stonesfield and Enstone. The risk of the gas seeping out in the area is between three and ten per cent.

In 1996, a gas alert was issued to 14,000 homes in Oxfordshire after the Didcot-based National Radiological Protection Board found higher than acceptable levels of radon in the north of the county.

The board made its discovery during a nationwide survey of 250,000 homes. The NRPB said radon concentrations could be reduced by using a special pump costing up to £1,000, which the board will loan for a small charge. For a radon help pack, call 0800 614529.

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