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Machine-read from the scan, so expect some errors. Lines that couldn’t be read are left out.
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ATOMIC ENERGY COMMISSION NOTE FOR JOHN WHITNAH With respect to the enclosed: We propose a response to inquiry--something in the nature of a talking paper--rather than a public announcement. For that reason, we have no objection to editorial changes, rearrangement of paragraphs or the addition of material. In other words, there is no pride of authorship. In responding, we will talk from the material, not simply read it to the reporter. But we do need the information necessary to handle press queries on this subject when the queries start arriving. For that reason, we would like restoration of the information which Kornfeld dropped. Whether or not it is restored, we would have to use it anyway if we are asked. The alternative would be to refuse to give it, and I don’t think anyone wants to put the agency in that position. After we get your blessing, I will show the General Manager and the Commissioners. of Information Services
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Dr. Liver man would like your review of the attached. Office o f the General Manager
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The draft press release you wanted reviewed i s altogether unacceptable, I have rewritten it, retaining the intent of the original version as much as possible, Enclosed is a recently prepared "fact sheet" summarizing the plutonium studies in man, goes into somewhat more detail than the press release. Additional supplemental information consists of articles by Durbin, Langham, Stone
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Response t o Query on Plutonium Injection Study The Atomic Energy Commission is conducting a staff inquiry into a study undertaken by t h e Manhattan Engineering District near t h e end of World War I1 t o determine how plutonium, a man-made radioactive material,is deposited and excreted inthe human body. The scientific community has been aware of this study for many years.--An analysis of the findings may be found inthe book, "Radiobiology of Plutonium," published i n 1972 by the J.,W. Press, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah. In the 1940's i t was essential to establish realistic criteria for protecting the health of thousands of plutonium workers who this hazardous material. and excretion of this radio nuclide in man was re qd ed. already been learned from experiments i n animals, including the fact that the For this purpose, accurate information on the retention A great deal had metabolic patterns of plutonium varied from one species to another. Thus, it was recognized that reliable information pertaining to man could be obtained only from persons who had received small but known amounts of this material and the decision was made to initiate studies designed to yield the needed Between 1945 and 1947, 18 hospital patients were injected with varying Over 45 years old and suffered from chronic or malignant diseases such that survival for 10 years was highly improbable. All but one of the injections were given before the AM: was established in August 1946. were conducted for about five years after the injections. known today about the retention of plutonium i n man is based on data from The subjects selected for the study generally were Much of what i s
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In 1972 and 1973, an investigator at an AEC contract facility arranged for follow-up studies on three surviving patients and on the body of one deceased patient.A series of papers describing the results of these recent studies will be presented at the International Congress for Radiation Research t o be held in Seattle, Washington, in July 1974. The inquiry now being conducted by AEC staff at the request of the five-member Commission, seeks to establish the circumstances under whicn this study was done, including whether any of the 18 patients or their next ofkin were informed about the nature and purpose of the injections at the time they were given o r when the.recent follow-up studies were undertaken. Policy guidelines for the conduct o f medical experimentation on humans and the concept of informed consent were not clearly formulated until 1969. Subsequently, the AEC instituted the requirement that its contractors adhere to the 1969 guidelines of the National Institutes of Health. More recently, the revised policy of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare, a s described in DHEW publication No. (NIH) 72-102, dated December 1, 1971, The findings of the inquiry are to be reported to the Commission a s soon as the investigation has been completed.