Dear Mr. Ith:
Your article in the Seattle Times entitled "Understanding Leukemia" and the
similar post on the Times web site have been called to my attention. I believe
these articles contain misinformation that should be corrected.
You say: "For Example, citizens of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, survived the
atomic bomb blasts of August 1945 only to die from leukemia at high rates." This
statement certainly implies that the death toll from radiation-induced leukemia has
been greater than the direct effects of the explosions. The truth of the matter is
that tens of thousands of people died from the blast effects while the best scientific
data indicate that through 1990 there were about 94 radiation-induced leukemia
deaths. This is a published conclusion of the joint US-Japanese foundation that has
been studying the A bomb survivors for decades; see: Pierce, Donald A., et al.,
"Studies of the Mortality of Atomic Bomb Survivors, Report 12, Part 1, Cancer:
1950-1990," Radiation Research, 146, pp 1-27, 1996.
Next, you say: "In the U. S., leukemia rates claimed among people exposed to the
1979 nuclear accident at Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania." We have seen no
data to support this contention. In fact, the National Cancer Institute's study of
cancer in the populations living near US nuclear facilities specifically investigated
the people who live near Three Mile Island and found "no suggestion that nuclear
facilities may be linked causally with deaths from leukemia or other cancers" -- see
Jablon, Seymour, et al., Cancer in Populations Living Near Nuclear Facilities, National
Institutes of Health Publication 90-874, July 1990.
Misinformation about radiation abounds so it is easy to be misled. Therefore it is
suggested that, when you intend to write about radiation, please check with a health
physicist, i.e. a specialist in radiation safety. Most of us are willing to help and we
are only a phone call or E mail away. Some ot the most respected health physicists
live in Washington state, e.g. Professor Ronald Kathren, 509-375-5643.
Sincerely,
Charles A. Willis
301-415-1091
caw@nrc.gov