Cost-effectiveness analysis of radon control actions

Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive noble gas belonging to the decay chain of uranium. In confined spaces, high concentration of radon can become a serious health concern. Experts widely agree that prolonged exposure to this gas can significantly increase the risk of lung cancer. Over the last decades, finding the appropriate measurement and remediation strategies for the problem of radon at home has been the subject of intense debate in literature. An important step in deciding which policies to implement regards the comparison of the proposed radon actions along two dimensions of interest: benefits and costs. In this paper, we examine the decision problems associated with a hypothetical domestic radon control programme in target areas of a region of interest. The main focus is on showing how the cost-effectiveness analysis can be enhanced by exploiting the advantages of a Bayesian hierarchical modeling.