ls

T OID LESIONS IN MARSHALLESE, EXPO97”
(AS OF MAY, 1974).
~~

TO FALLOUT

te

/

Thyroid l
dose-rads

Thyroid
Lesions
Percent

Estimated

Marshall Island Group
(radiation dose-gamma)

Age at
Exposure

Rongelap (175 rads
gamma exposure)

In-utero
<10

175 + ?
675 - 1440

33.3 (1/3)
89.5 (17/19)

Rongelap
(on Ailingne
Island -69 rads gamma

!P-YERE
>16

88
t feo
132

3978
(2644
16.6 (2/12

11-16
>16
all

-

exposure)

all

335 - 675
335
4

-

Utirik’ (14 rads gamma

<10

40,- 80

Rongelap unexposed

<10

-

all

-

exposure)

>10
all

>10

Likiep unexposed (1970)

<10
all

Lose fron LOL,

LIZ,

259,

Malignant
Lesions
Percent

Thyroid
Surgery -

12.5 (1/8)
8.1 (3/37)
32.8 (21/64)

15
1
3
17

§.3 (1/19)

5.4 (2/37)
4.7 (3/64)

22.2 (4/18)

2

3

.-

0.0 (0/53)

0

-

22
-

-

§.8 (6/104)
3.2 (5/157)

4
4

1.6 (1/61)

0

3.6 (7/194)

2

0.0 (0/31)

0

3.6 (5/137)

0

4.5 (6/133)

-

-

4.7 (5/106)

-

2

0

1.0 (1/104)
0.6 (1/157)

-

-

-

-

-

jay plus gamma dose

2Rased on number of original people exposed.

in group.

In parentheses number of cases/total number

3the thyroid is considered fully developed by age 16.
4

Difference of opinion as to wnether or not one lesion was malignant.
was that it was benign.
o

«

.

-

.

.

Majority opinion

>the more energetic shorter-lived isotopes of iodine contributed less to the total
thyroid dose in the Utirik people due to late r fallout.
One might surmise also that the
biological effectiveness of the thyroid dose per rad would be less in that group.
OF ifteen children 10-17 years of age at exposu re in this group received estimated thyroid
doses between 22 and 40 rads.

7

In addition to thyroid lesions, one case of a cute myelogenous leukemia was discovered
in September 1972 in a 19-year-old Rongelap b oy who had received 175 rad gamma radiation
at one year of age.
He died November, 1972.

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