Homeowner Jan Poulsen of South Jordan Utah, was diagnosed with stage 3 lung cancer thanks to exposure to elevated levels of radon gas. After remodeling her home, she disturbed the soil underneath and it changed the radon levels in her home, which grew to be well over the recommended action limit.
Testing Your Home for Radon Gas May Save Your Life
Image by Lisa (Flickr)
Poulsen first bought her home in 1992 and had the house initially tested for radon gas.
“We did test it and it was at an acceptable level,” she said. “Well we didn’t know what that really meant because we never heard of radon.”
Years later, she had her home remodeled to expand a walk out basement. Naturally, this disturbs the soil underneath releasing any radon gas that may have collected under the slab. She did not think to retest her home, which was a bad decision.
“5 Years later I was diagnosed with stage 3 lung cancer and I’m not a smoker, never have been,” says Poulsen.
After being diagnosed, her doctor recommended retesting the radon gas levels in her home, which she did.
“[The test] came back 24.9 Which is over 6 times what the acceptable level is.”
This is not just an isolated story either. About 160,000 people die each year from lung cancer, and of those 21,000 have died due to radon-induced lung cancer. Every one in fifteen homes in the country is estimated to have elevated radon gas levels inside, and most homeowners and families have no idea about it.
“[Mrs. Poulsen’s] medical bill alone was about $1.25 million so far,” says John Seidel, owner of Radon Be Gone in Utah. He compared it to the average cost of a mitigation system — about $1,300 — which can be installed to remove the deadly gas from a home.
“That [estimate] includes the concrete work, where we put in a suction pit. It includes the fan that’s usually wired in the attic and discharged through the roof, a performance meter and a post test as well. $1,300 versus cancer, it’s the cheapest insurance you’ll ever have.”
Unfortunately, Seidel is right.
Test Your Home for Radon Gas Today
Sadly, most folks have absolutely no idea it could be prevented with a $10 radon testing kit. Everyone should test their homes for the presence of radon gas, no matter where they live.
It’s a naturally occurring gas that’s produced as a decay product of common elements such as Uranium. Those elements exist in the soil and rock underneath our feet, and our homes. Once produced, the dense gas seeps inside and collects in great amounts. Exposure to elevated levels of the gas can lead to lung cancer, and many other pulmonary health issues.
To put that into perspective — even though we’ve already mentioned it — 21,000 Americans die each year from radon-induced lung cancer. It is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the US and many countries including Canada, the UK and others. It is more problematic than second hand smoke. If you want to get real technical, it is the single leading cause of lung cancer in non-smokers. It’s a huge problem, and we all need to be made aware of it.
Have your home tested today. Mrs. Poulsen — and many others — can attest to the fact that you don’t want to be diagnosed with lung cancer, especially when it could have been easily prevented.
Via: Good 4 Utah
