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THE SECRETARY OF ENERGY Chairman , Subcommittee on Energy Committee on Energy and Commerce This is in response to a letter from Chairman Ottinger dated October 23, 1984, requesting further documentation concerning radiation experiments performed on human subjects. The enclosed package o f material supplies the requested documentation, The first enclosure answers the specific questions in the letter and includes some documentation that is not among the fact sheets. fact sheets with their corresponding documentation, grouped by the topics indicated on the summary fact sheets. sheets are classified and have not been included. classified reports could be secured and made available for review by the Subcommittee members and appropriately cleared stzff. This is followed by Four reports referenced i n the fact The Infomation on the names and other personal information on the prisoners (SFS2.001 and 2.002) has been requested from the investigators,but has not yet been received. The information contained i n the material t o be supplied may be exempt from public disclosure pursuant to Exemptions 5 and 6 of the protects memoranda or letters that contain advice, opinions, or recommendations which are pre-decisional and apart of the decision-making process of the agency. Exemption6protects information i n personnel, medical, and 'similar files the disclosure of which would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy. In fact, two of the individuals signed forms consenting t o publication of results of the research project (SFS2.001 and 2.002) with the understanding that they would not be personally identified. Me seek your guidance on how best t o respect their decisi.on i n responding t o Itfs the Department's policy, t o the maximum extent possible,to provide fnfor'mation t o the public on the Department's atomic weapons activities.
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Principal Investigator : Robert 5 . Stone Objective(s1of Project : To determine the excretion rate of plutonium in man in order to provide the information necessary for setting safety criteria for the several thousand MED workers hand1 ing plutonium. "\. Short Description : During the period 4-10-45 t o 7-18-47 a total of 18 patients with an estimated life expectancy (because of existing disease) of less than 10 years were injected with on the average 0.3 micro curie of pl utonium-239 (1 patient) ; Strong Med. Hosp., Rochester, NY (11); Billings Hosp., U. o f The patients included 13 males and 5 females. By race there * r e 15 whites and 3 b l a c k s . The ages of 13 were 45-65 years, 4 were 18-45 an2 one was 4 years old. Body excretions were collected and measured for pluto n iur content for several weeks after Injection. These data have been analyzed mac/ times in efforts to find the best mathematical parameters. years,three In8to 14 years, and four after 20 years. One i s (Oct. 19831 and the status of one Is unknown. None ofthe deat': was related to plutonium exposure and there 1s no evidence t o suggest that ~ ' b toni um Injection influenced the course ofthe diseases. The bodies of fG Jr of the deceased patients have been studied fortes l dual plutonium con ? t ' t - With the burdens from plutonium urinary ex c ret lon rates.
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Project Category: Metabol Ism and Biological Effects of Plutonium, Polonium, Radi um, Thorl um, Uranium and Lead-212 Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory (Uranium) Massachusetts General Hospital (Uranium) Oak Ridge National Laboratory (Uranium) Objective(s1of Project : Data on the distribution and metabolism o f these substances inthe body was needed for evaluation of the health hazards o f exposure t o these and related substances. Short Desc rfp tion : I n 1947 a t Rochester, four human subjects were injected intravenously with'0.17 t o 0.3 micro curie of polonium per kg body weight, and a fifth subject was given polonium orally.Fecal and urinary excretion rates were measured. lIn Boston, Hexavalent uranium was given to 12 terminal brain tumor patients. Blood, urine and feces samples were obtained. Tissue samples were obtained at biopsy and autopsy and were studied at Oak Ridge (Oct. 1953-Oct. 1959). I n 1965 a t Los Alamos the mean transit times for microspheres labeled with uranium-235 through the gastrointestinal tract was studied in 57 normal adults.Particle sizes were about 100 toa few hundred micrometers . diameter. The mean transit times were 34.5 * 16.6 hours. I n 1967 a t Rochester, lead-212 was administered by mouth to three human subjects. Gastrointestinal absorption s of 1.3, 8.1 and 16.0% were found. Excretion rates were compared with those for two subjects who received lead-212 Intravenously. The uptake and retention of lead in red blood cells less than one and one - half years after entering the study. No follow - u p was obtained in the other studies. -
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Oak Ridge Associated Universities(ORAU) Objective(s1of Project : 1 ) To explore the possibilities for treatment of chronic leukemia, lymphoma and poly cy the mia with radiation ; 2) To obtain radio biological data. Short Description : In 1957 ORAU began a program designed for treatment of cancer patients and for assessment of the health effects of total body radiation.In 1964, NASA began to provide additional funds to include measuring the biological effects of low radiation doses and low dose rate exposures. Nearly 200 patients were treated with 50 or 100 Rina Cs-137 whole body irradiation facility.A few patients with acute leukemia were given doses o f 300 R or more. Detailed and systematic studies were made of blood cell s, bone marrow,clinical effects and selected 1a b oratory tests. I n some of the patients with high doses, the effects of autogenous and homo1 ogous bone marrow grafts were studied. Fol low - up Data : Measurements were cont ln u ed for atleast6 weeks for each pat lent. The studies were not deslgned t o analyze the late effects.
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Reject Cateqory: Neutron Capture Therapy objective(s) of project: Brain tunor therapy Short Description: Neutron capture therapy uses the localization of boron in tunors and the reaction of boron with neutrons to achieve localized radiation of brain tunors. 15, 1951, 10 patients with proved glioblastam were treated by neutron capture therapy at the graphite research reactor. Over a period of two years beginning February The longest survival was A s ~ o n d6eries of 9 patients -re treated with higher neutron.doses. patient survived 18 months. One In 1959, a series using the Medical Research Reactor kms started. Fifteeen patients were treated. previous aeries. Survival times were in the SBTP range as for the ?ollov-up Data: Mole brain sections b e r e obtained in at least 16 of the patients and rtdied for tissue reactions to radiation. cuqx~ndsthen in use it was not possible to achieve adequate tunor control without un8cceptable damage to n o m 1 tissues and the project was With the boron
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lb) New York University lc) Oak Ridge National Laboratory 3 1 Lawrence Radiation Laboratory Oak Ridge Associated Universities 4 ) Oak Ridge National Laboratory General Electric Company 1 ) To deter nine the biological effects of irradiation to the skin 2 ) To study transplantation of tissues and whole organs and 1-131 when therapeutically used in certain diseases, and the evaluation of the he z ta to logical response obtained from their use 4 ) To deter nine the distribution of tr it i un in the human body resulting from surfs ce contamination, inhalation and ingestion Short Description and Follow-up Data: la)Shielded disks of l - inch diameter containing P-32 were used. Exposures were made by setting the source directly on the skin. healthy volunteers each wefe exposed t o doses o f 140 t o 1180 rep. The dose re qu fred to produce a vj sib le reaction in 80% of the people was found t o be between 170 and 200 rep. lbl Experiments carried out on living human skin in situ demonstrated that the lon toph or esl s of weak solutions of thorium X w ’ i7m crease its bf o log lcs l effects 8s judged by erythema and pigmentation, and cause greater penetration 8s shown by autoradiography. Two groups often For &n erythema the dose was determined t o be 635 t 0
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I SUKIURY FACTSHEET HUMAN EXPERIHENTATION - SFS12.001 Argonne Cancer Research Hospi t a l Argonne Iiati onal Laboratory Los A I aw s Scientific Laboratory Pacific Northwest Laboratory Sloan - Kett et i ng Inst. for Cancer Research 10. t4. Pol ly cove Un iv. M i nnesota conducted on human subjects - for the purposes of studying the physiology and metabol Is m of labeled substances. Usual ly only a few subjects are in vol ved i n each study. No late effects are expected and In general,there has not been 0b systematic follow - up.Brief description of the studies are: (1 Progesterone-4 1& be led w l th carbon-14 was used t o study progesterone meta bo tIm ln two pat lent s. Dotes were 5.27 and 37.81 uCi. who was 10 weeks pregnant was given 28.3 uCi. later because of severe sickle cell anemia was performed. Act lv it yIn fJUtern81 and fetal tissues studied. Storage ofthe hormone i n the fat compartments were found. (1958.)
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