A Park City man is encouraging community members to continuously monitor their homes for radon, an odorless, radioactive gas that is the leading cause of lung cancer in non-smokers.

Bill Johnson has been working to raise awareness about radon since last year, when he was diagnosed with stage four non-small cell lung cancer that has metastasized to his brain and spine. The 44-year-old isn’t a smoker and lives a healthy lifestyle, so he wondered what could have caused the cancer.

He researched possibilities, and although Johnson can’t say for sure radon is the source, he is working to raise awareness about the gas and its connection to lung cancer cases.

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Radon comes from the natural decay of uranium that is found in nearly all soils and typically moves up through the ground to the air above and into homes through cracks and other holes in the foundation, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

Radon is generally high in Utah because of its geology, Johnson said, and, because of Park City’s long mining history, “we have a little bit of a built-in conduit system for gas, any gas exposure, radon included,” he said.

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For instance, a neighbor doing a remodel and shifting a lot of subterranean dirt or the construction of a large development could raise the exposure to radon in nearby homes, Johnson said.

The American Cancer Society says there are about 238,340 new cases of lung cancer every year and about 127,070 deaths from lung cancer. Approximately 21,000 of those deaths, or 16.5%, are from radon-induced lung cancer.

Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer and the leading cause in non-smokers. In Utah, non-smokers make up 20% of lung cancer diagnoses, according to UtahRadon.org.

Johnson is a married father of two sons, ages 11 and 13, and a member of the Park City Planning Commission. He has lived in Park City for more than 30 years and was an avid mountain biker, trail runner and skier.

A screen with a charcoal radon test kit did not detect the gas when the family moved into their home 14 years ago, and Johnson didn’t think about radon again until he learned in June that he had cancer. Then his wife bought a monitor, which showed seasonal fluctuations in the amount of exposure, he said.

“In the summertime it was fine, but when fall came around and the windows were shut, there were high levels on the bottom floor of my house,” Johnson said, adding he had worked remotely out of a room on that floor for 13 years.

His experience prompted Johnson to team up with Ecosense, a company that sells radon-monitoring products, on the Radon-Free Campaign. The campaign promotes continuous radon monitoring, and Utah customers who buy a monitor can get a 5% discount by using the promo code E-HAPPYLUNGS.

In addition, Ecosense donates a device for Park City and Summit County affordable housing per every five units sold.

Johnson also works with UtahRadon.org, which offers free radon tests that Utah Radon Services donates. He wants people to test, whether it be seasonally with a free test kit or by buying a monitor, and to take prompt action if mitigation services are needed.

UtahRadon.org has a mission to reduce the number of unnecessary radon-induced lung cancer deaths in Utah through education and testing. The U.S. EPA, Utah Department of Environmental Quality, World Health Organization, Huntsman Cancer Institute, American Lung Association and the American Cancer Society are part of the effort.

“Due to Utah’s unique geography, this invisible threat is found at dangerous levels in over half of Utah homes,” UtahRadon.org says on its website. “After prolonged radon exposure, the health of you and your loved ones (and, yes, even your pets) is at risk as radon is the leading cause of lung cancer in non-smokers.”

Visit utahradon.org/ or utahradonservices.com/ to request a free test.