The purpose of the study program carried out by the Departments of Epidemiology is to better understand how atomic bomb radiation exposure affects health through the long-term follow-up of the Life Span Study, In Utero Study, and Children of Atomic-bomb Survivors (F₁) Study cohorts.

Epidemiology Departments in Hiroshima and Nagasaki have similar organizational structures. The department in each city has sections of the Master File Section, Tumor and Tissue Registry Office, and Pathology Laboratory , and additionally the Epidemiological Analysis Office in Hiroshima and Computer Management Office in Nagasaki.

Epidemiological programs are at the center of RERF’s scientific programs and are internationally recognized as a major source of radio-epidemiological data.