New York: Exposure to radiation either as a result of a nuclear accident or during treatment of diseases may increase the risk of brain tumours in people under the age of 30, says an Indian-origin specialist.

"People who have been exposed to large doses of radiation to the head face a small risk of later developing brain tumors," said first author of the study, Vikram Prabhu, a neurosurgeon at the Loyola University Medical Center, Chicago in the US.