Department of Navy Interim Report of Human Radiation Experiments: Identification of Organizations That Might Have Conducted or Sponsored Human Radiation Experiments. Includes Profiles of Possi ...

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DEPARTMENT OF NAVY INTERIM REPORT OF HUMAN RADIATION EXPERIMENTS IDENTIFICATION OF ORGANIZATIONS THAT MIGHT HAVE CONDUCTED OR SPONSORED HUMAN RADIATION EXPERIMENTS ao duc tim. This interim report is in response to the Assistant to the Secretary of Defense (Atomic Pqergy) request for This portion of the Navy's review identifies organizations that might have conducted or sponsored human radiation experiments. Also identified are the archives and record centers where records concerning such experiments might exist and a description of steps taken to search those records. 1. On January 31, 1994 the Assistant to the Secretary of Defense (Atomic Energy) tasked the Secretaries of the Military Departments to provide a two-part report identifying, based on missions and activities, any activity that conducted or sponsored human radiation experiments. the Secretary of the Navy sent an All Navy message directing organizations to review their activities for any involvement. The information obtained in this initial search is presented here in two parts: To ensure a comprehensive search, PART ONE: Identifies archives or record centers where records concerning experiments might exist and a description of the steps taken to search those records. PART TWO: Identifies each possible human radiation experiment and the location of records regarding each experiment. This interim report provides an indication of the magnitude of the search involved and the amount of data available. Continuing efforts in data retrieval and visual inspections of available records will provide a complete and unbiased accounting of radiation experimentation. The Navy organizations listed below have been positively identified as having been involved, to some degree, with human Bureau of Medicine 23 b E Street CAPT David George Office of the Chief Ballston Center LCDR Eric Womble of Naval Research Tower#l 703 696-4259

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organization. The Bureau of Naval Medicine will be addressed first followed by the Office of Naval Research. experiments from BUMED and ONR within the scope of this search will be listed in Part I1 of this report. PART I: IDENTIFICATION OF ORGANIZATIONS THAT MIGHT HAVE The results of this review are provided below by CONDUCTED OR SPONSORED HUMAN RADIATION EXPERIMENTS Bureau of Me dlc rne and Surgery !BUMEL& 1. BUMED has been identified as one of two naval organizations that have sponsored human radiation experiments. 2 . Key researchers, active duty and retired, were questioned concerning research activities at various commands and documentation practices used during the time frame of interest, 1944 to the present. 3 . Reports at the Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC) were searched to identify applicable reports. Copies of research reports are usually sent to DTIC upon task completion. DTIC performed a search by key words of their computerized Title Index. The key word search identified over 3,200 titles. The titles correspond to reports of Army, Navy, Air Force and translations of foreign and other US agency work. The computerized Title Index contains all reports (700,000) provided to DTIC since 1972. (Some of the reports reflect research performed prior to 1972, e.g. work performed in the 1940s and 50s, but not submitted to DTIC until after 1972, e.g., upon the closing of a library, etc.). A manual review of the titles reduced the reports of interest to 513. Reviewing abstracts of the 513 reduced the number of reports to 155. Review of 148 of the 155 reports identified six related to Navy work involving exposure of humans to radioisotopes in the course of the experiment. other seven are pending. Reviews of the Reports submitted to DTIC prior to 1972 are maintained on index cards. A search by key word yielded approximately 390 titles. Review of the abstracts identified approximately 96 of 4. Record storage procedures were reviewed to understand the archiving system. Activities forward records to Regional Records Centers where they are held for designated retention Clinical charts and personnel medical records are retained for 75 years. After approximately 25 years, those records that remain are transferred to the National Archives where a decision is made Administrative records are retained for 6 years.

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to purge (destroy) or retain the files. Qnly 1-2 percent of all ative records actually a0 into the archives and these are mostly legal cases or titles, etc. Personnel, medical, and clinical records go to the National Records Center in St. Louis. Records are filed by Service Number or Serial Number. St. Louis is counting the cubic feet of records from each medical facility. Inltlal estimates. I indicate etely 28 lnillion Navy med kal records are stored at St. Louis cove-0 from 1944 to the sresent. All Regional Archives and Federal Records Centers have been contacted and are searching for records. All have replied 5. Each BUMED activity was tasked to search their records and report any experiments or clinical trials that involved exposure to human test subjects. 6. The Naval Environmental Health Center's Manager for Medical Department Radioactive Material Use Permits was asked to review Licenses and Permits to identify activities authorized to use radioactivity on human test subjects, and provide an estimate of time periods during which various commands had active programs. In addition, copies of any curriculum vitae containing publications reflecting studies on humans were requested. 7. Curriculum vitae (CV) were requested from researchers to help identify publications reflective of work performed at 8 . A list of possible researchers was compiled to allow a search for publications containing the research efforts at various activities. Activities identified or suspected of having performed experiments or clinical studies involving exposure to humans are listed below. The summaries below include a description of efforts to identify experiments conducted, records found, and list of possible experiments: A. Naval Medical Research Institute (NMRI), Bethesda, MD: NMRI established the Radiation Technology Division which did basic animal radiobiology work and support work for atomic weapons testing. Division was active from early 1940s until Efforts to locate human radiation experiment records: performed at NMRI. ( 2 ) Searched through technical documents available in NMRI Queried knowledgeable individuals as to the type work!

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( 3 ) Searched computerized and index card records. ( 4 ) Queried Federal Records Centers for NMRI records. ( 5 ) Queried Federal Archives for NMRI records. ( 6 ) Searching Medicus Indicus for publications by NMRI ( 7 ) Searching License File for curriculum vitae. Dr. Vic Bond, (516) 282-3332, and Dr. Eugene Cronkite, (516) 282-7538, Brookhaven National Laboratory. Captain Bob Gaugler, MSC, USN, NMRI Captain Doug Erhardt, MSC, USN, Executive Officer, NMRI Bob Plowman. Joseuh Sheehan. Dan Bennett. National~ ~~ Archives and Fede>al Records Center, Philadelphia (215) ( 1 ) Copies of all Technical reports are located in ( 2 ) Location of archive records if any exists is Environmental Health Center. ( 4 ) One cu ft of logs dated 1944-1956 were destroyed Aug 1992 by Federal Records Center, St. Louis. List of Experiments or Possible Experiments: occurred in collaboration with the hospital (1943-1960). Dr. Cronkite stated doctors stationed at NMRI 1946-1954 were not allowed to see patients in the hospital. Exchange and Excretion of Antimony in Humans Given a Single Dose of Tartar Emetic." April 1944 Radioisotope License File is on record with the Navy Suspect some physiology and medical human tests Tracer study with radioactive antimony on two patients with lephantitis to study the location and clearance time of antimony which was used as the standard treatment of the parasites which caused the disease.

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(3) Study "Decreased Free Fraction of Thyroid Hormones After Prolonged Antarctic Residence". 1983-1984 Study of the effect of cold weather on thyroid function performed under the auspices of NMRI on volunteers wintering over on Antarctica. 6. Naval Hospital Saint Albans: Naval Hospital St. Albans was disestablished in 1973. St. Albans was the major Navy cancer treatment hospital on the East Coast in the late 1940s to early 1960s. In 1952 a medical physicist was assigned to help physicians develop therapeutic use of radioisotopes. Efforts to locate human radiation experiment records: knowledgeable of activities at St. Albans to determine type ( 2 ) Queried Federal Records Centers for presence of (3) Queried National Archives for presence of records. (4) Searched DTIC index and card files by key words for papers or reports prepared by individuals at St. Albans. (5) Searching Medicus Indicus for papers published by individuals stationed at St. Albans. (6) Searched radioisotope license file. Captain Horace Chester Dudley, MSC, USN (Ret) Robert Morris, National Archives Boston (617) 647-8100 Martin Kabakoff, Federal Records Center, Boston (617) 647Lee Remero, Federal Records Center, New York (201) 823-7161 Karen Lucus, Federal Records Center, New York(201) 823-5487 Gregory J. Plunges, National Archives, New York (212) 337William Seibert, National Personnel Records Center, St. Joseph Sheehan, National archives, Philadelphia Grill Plunges, National Archives, New York Human radiation experiment records found: ( 1 ) No experiment records found. Interviewed individuals previously stationed or

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(2) Nation Archives, New York, holds 1.5 cubic feet of St. Albans records, 10 page command history, no experimental results or clinical trial information. (3) Patients charts and military health records located in Federal Records Center, St. Louis, 3,249 cu ft for years (4) Open scientific literature may hold published papers, however, none have yet been found. List of Possible Experiments: (1) Clinical applications with human test subjects at major navy cancer treatment hospital on east coast. Medical C. Naval Medical Research Unit No.3, Cairo, Egypt: Efforts to locate human radiation experiment records: (1) Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC) computer search of key words. Conducted a manual review of titles and abstracts via a key word search to identify possible human radiation experiment records. ( 2 ) Queried Federal Records Centers. Captain Ed Flynn, MC, USN, Commanding Officer, Research and Medical Records of military located at Federal Records Ms Celicia Chance Federal Records Center, Suitland, MD (301) Ms Millie Sturate, Federal Records Center, Suitland, MD Mr. Jim Smith. Federal Records Center, Fort Worth TX (Port of entry for foreign generated US records) William Seibert, National Personnel Records Center, St. (1) Reports are at NMRU 3 in Cairo.

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(2) Two reports in DTIC files. (3) Radioisotope License file, Navy Environmental Health List of Experiments or Possible Experiments: (1) Study "Calcification of Schistosoma Haematoeium Eggs: Relation of Radiologically Demonstrable Calcification to Eggs in Tissues and Passage of Eggs in Urine." March 1978 Study compared radiographic evidence of parasite infestation with the number of eggs sloughed in the urine. (2) Study "Urinary Schistosomiasis in Egypt: Further D. National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, MD. National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda installed a small reactor in approximately 1952 to manufacture radio pharmaceuticals. Clinical research has continued to the present. Efforts to locate human radiation experiment records: (1) Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC) computer search of key words. Manual reviews of titles and abstracts was conducted of the key word search to identify records. (2) Contacted National Archives. ( 3 ) Contacted Federal Record Centers. ( 5 ) Searching journals for published articles. (6) Reviewing curriculum vitae of previous staff members to identify studies they may have published. CAPT Karl Mendenhall, MSC, USN (202) 653-1182 Bob Plowman, National Archives, Philadelphia (215) 597-3000 Joseph Sheehan, National Archives, Philadelphia Dan Bennett, Federal Records Center, Philadelphia (215) 597

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Rich Boyland, National Archives, Suitland, MD (301) Velicia Chance Federal Records Center, Suitland, MD Millie Sturate, Federal Records Center, Suitiand, MD Jim Jensen, Records Manager for Navy, 202-433-2434 William Seibert, National Personnel Records Center, (1) Whole Body Counter, 50 cu ft: Patient charts, whole body counting data, patient logs and occupational radiation safety whole body scans. (2) Radiation therapy: approximately 11,000 radiation therapy patient treatments at the institute, some of which, were on protocols. (3) Federal records Center, Suitland MD., 756 cu ft of records, 1952-1979. Records may be BUMED records versus National Naval Medical Center. (4) Clinical Investigation Division: They believe they have all records since division was established approximately (5) Radioisotope License file, Navy Environmental Health (6) Clinical Investigation Division, Health science Education and Training Command. (7) Federal Personnel Records Center, St. Louis, 6,046 cu List of Experiments or Possible Experiments: (1) Nuclear medicine tracer studies. Diagnosis of multiple small pulmonary emboli with Tc-99m microspheres. scan paper published in the United States, 1958-1960 time Metabolism studies using whole body counting. Whole body retention of orally administered Calcium-47. Total body potassium as a reference standard for normality of red blood cell mass.

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(4) Radiation therapy protocol patients in cooperation with radiation therapy groups sponsored by the National Cancer (5) Clinical Investigation studies. Cell-Depleted Bone Marrow Transplant Patient." May 1974 Study of antibody formation in a bone marrow transplant patient. Bone marrow had been sterilized by radiation. E. Naval Hospital Chelsea/Navy Blood Lab. Naval Hospital Chelsea/Naval Blood Lab was disestablished approximately 1968. Their work is now performed under contract. Contractor: Cryopharm Corporation and St. Elizabeth's Hospital, Boston. Efforts to locate human radiation experiment records: (1) Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC) computer search of key words. Manual reviews of titles and abstracts was conducted of the key word search to identify possible human radiation experiment records. (3) Contacted Federal Records Centers. Jim Owens, National Archives, Boston. (617) 647-8100 Martin Kabakoff, Federal Records Center, Boston (617) 647Robert Morris, National Archives, Boston (617) 647-8100 Lee Remero, Federal Records Center, New York (201) 823-7161 Karen Lucus, Federal Records Center, New York(201) 823-5487 Gregory J. Plunges, National Archives, New York (212) 337William Seibert, National Personnel Records Center, St. Joseph Sheehan, National Archives, Philadelphia Graff Plunges, National Archives, New York CAPT Jim Alexander, MC, USN, Health Sciences and Education (1) Federal Records Center, Boston 4 cu ft, Chelsea NH, 1968-74, surgical cases and disease categories. (2) Blood lab estimates large quantity of records, estimated copying cost, $100,000.

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(3) Federal Personnel Records Center, St. Louis, NH Chelsea records 119 cu ft labeled "special study and clinical List of Possible Experiments: (1) Red blood cell survival studies of transfused blood to test cell survival using Chromium-51. (November 1990) (2) Multiple other blood transfusion and blood storage F. Naval Hospital, Sari Diego, Ca: Efforts t o locate human radiation experiment records: (1) Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC) computer search of key words. Conducted a manual reviews of titles and abstracts via a key word search to identify possible human radiation experiment records. (2) Queried National Archives for records. (3) Queried Federal Records Centers for records. (4) Requested curriculum vitae from prior staff to assist in a literature review. Diane Nixon, National Archives, Laguna (714) 643-4241 Sharon Roadway, Federal Records Center, Laguna(714 643-4241 Waverly Lowell, National Archives, San Bruno (415) 876-9009 Richard Boyden, Federal Records Center, San Bruno 415) 876-- William Seibert, National Personnel Records Center LCDR Dean Taylor, MSC, USN, (619) 532-8784 Environmental Health Center. List of Experiments or Possible Experiments: Clinical investigation records are at Naval Hospital Radioisotope License File on record with the Navy

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studies were published or presented: of Anaplastic Carcinoma and Malignant Lymphoma in the A curriculum vitae review indicates the following "Clinical Evaluation of Ga-67 Scanning in the Diagnosis "Focal Increased Lung Perfusion and Intrapulmonary Venoarterial Shunting in Broncho Alveolar Cell Carcinoma." "Bone Scanning in the Evaluation of Exercise Related "Thyroid Uptake of 1-131: Further Comparison of Capsules and Liquid Preparations." …