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Re: Myeloid leukemia and multiple myeloma
Joel Baumbaugh wrote:
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Date: Tue, 11 Apr 2000 05:48:43 -0700
From: Joel Baumbaugh <baumbaug@nosc.mil>
To: radsafe@romulus.ehs.uiuc.edu
Subject: Re: multiple myeloma
RADSAFERS,
One of my school texts , "The Leukemias: Etiology,
Pathophysiology, and Treatment , J,Rebuck et al, lists three known causes
of leukemia, they are heredity, benzol, and ionizing radiations. According
to this text, spontaneous Myeloid leukemia is considered to be a disease of
the middle span of life, and while it is more prevalent in the affluent
than the poor, and in Caucasians more than any other race, it affects males
and females equally. As most of you know, in Japan after Hiroshima and
Nagasaki there was a peak incidence of leukemia in 1950 - 1952. Of the 92
cases (at that time), 39 were myeloid leukemia and only 1 was chronic
lymphatic leukemia - the remainder were acute and subacute leukemias.
Not too many years ago, San Onofre Generating station had a former
NRC inspector sue the station - her lawyers maintained that her exposure at
the plant (I forget now, but I believe it was under 100 mrem) was
responsible for her contracting the disease - even though it occurs
spontaneously in the worlds population and statistically seems to run in
some families. Perhaps one of them subscribed to RADSAFE can help out my
recollections...
Joel Baumbaugh (baumbaug@nosc.mil)
SSC-SD
Jim Dukelow comments:
This is interesting, but multiple myeloma and myeloid leukemia are different
diseases.
The draft report of the Wing et al. multiple myeloma study was issued with some
fanfare a couple of years ago, complete with a video of Wing describing the
results. I asked Wing for a copy of the full report and read it fairly
carefully. I concur with Otto Raabe's assessment of it. Meta-analysis of
various epi studies may suggest an association between radiation and multiple
myeloma, as Ron Kathren reports, but Wing's study, at least in its two-year-ago
version, provides no support for that suggestion.
Readers of RADSAFE have perhaps not been properly appreciative of Wing's
contribution to the efficiency of scientific endeavor. You never actually have
to read one of his papers to know what the "results" are going to be.
Best regards.
Jim Dukelow
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Richland, WA
jim.dukelow@pnl.gov
These comments are mine and have not been reviewed and/or approved by my
management or by the U.S. Department of Energy.
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