RE: Ship Yard Workers - Journal Publication vs. Report/Thesis Findings Issue

["Jacobus, John (OD/ORS)" <jacobusj@ors.od.nih.gov>]

Stewart,

My comment is that I do not know of any other data that links Graves' disease with radiation.  I think the mechanism of damage to the pituitary gland is interesting, but did they find any other hormonal effects?  Where there any changes in growth, metabolic function, mammary secretions, hair growth, and sex organ development?  So the only hormonal change was in TSH?  Does that seem strange? 

 

If I remember correctly the study of children treated for tinea capitis, which would be comparable to the NRI exposure, did not show any increase in Graves' disease.  Does not raise a question in your mind?

 

Have a nice holiday.

 

-- John

John Jacobus, MS
Certified Health Physicist
3050 Traymore Lane
Bowie, MD  20715-2024

E-mail:  jenday1@email.msn.com (H)     

-----Original Message-----
From: SAFarberMSPH@cs.com [mailto:SAFarberMSPH@cs.com]
Sent: Friday, December 21, 2001 4:03 PM
To: Jacobus, John (OD/ORS); radsafe@list.vanderbilt.edu
Subject: Re: Ship Yard Workers - Journal Publication vs. Report/Thesis Findings Issue
 . . .
Don't apologize John for not realizing that solid scientific evidence exists documenting an 8.6 fold Relative Risk for Graves Disease [thyrotoxicosis] per Sandler's thesis and "unpublished" papers, which Sandler felt was due to intense irradiation of the pituitary gland which is located quite proximal to the Eustachian tube opening where the Nasal Radium Irradiation applicators were positioned. Sandler hypothesized that pituitary function was upset due to the irradiation it received in the NRI procedure, and the pituitary's  production of TSH [Thyroid Stimulating Hormone] was out of balance leading to thyrotoxicosis  developing.  

. . .