Re: Queries

[xat@inel.gov (Alden Tschaeche)]

Jones, Pauline wrote:

> 2. A research lab graduate student, on discovering she was pregnant,
> who was working with H-3 only was concerned for the fetus. Instead of
> seeking advise from Radiation Safety first, saw her family physician
> who advised her to abort, which she did.

Here's a case of where radiation phobia literally killed someone. 
Radsafers should be hugely concerned that physicians are so poorly
educated that they would provide the advice that this physician did.  Of
course Pauline didn't tell us any dose data.  If the student had a
significantly large tritium intake, which I doubt, then there might be
some, although slight, basis for such advice. I remember reading in
Health Physics many years ago about a woman who had a radioactive needle
inplant that resulted in a huge dose to her foetus.  The baby was born
and, at the time of the report, was a healthy normal boy.  If such a
thing really can happen, the medical community ought to know about it.