TITLE
=Medical Studies of the People
of the Marshall Islands Accidentally
BUDGET AND REPORTING CODE
Exposed to Fallout
HA~02-01-01
CONTRACTOR NAME
CODE
Associated Universities, Inc.
BNL
20.
Detail Attachments.
cont.
f.
Technical Progress.
cont.
Expected Progress in FY 1983.
DATE PREPARED
WP NUMBER
03/31/81
TASK NO.
REV. NO.
0
cont.
hematologic disorders, and other possible effects of radiation exposure.
Coordination with the patient and ecosystem monitoring teams from the Safety and Environ“mental Protection Division will continue.
The scope of this program will be
revised as the Burton Bill is implemented.
g. Future Accomplishments.
Data obtained from this study will continue to provide baseline statistics
for all studies of human health effects of acute high level and long-term low
level internal and external radiation.
h.
Relationships
to Other Projects.
The studies of the exposed Marshallese are closely related to the Radiation
Effects Research Foundation studies in Japan and to the studies of the 23 Japanese
fisherman exposed at the same time as the Marshallese to fallout.
Acute and
long-term,
low-level radiation ranks
as
one of the most
important hazards
that
must be considered in the DOE medical programs.
The effects of fallout exposure
in the Marshallese provides valuable information, particularly with regard to thy—
roid effects from radioiodine exposure, that may relate to future reactor
accidents.
The longitudinal Marshallese data have been used in the analysis of
such accidents.
The data are also quoted in other reports such as those of the
NCRP, ICRP, BIER, and the United Nations.
The
Safety and Environmental Protection Division of this Laboratory conducts
radiological personnel and environmental surveys of contaminated Marshall Islands
and their inhabitants.
These studies are closely coordinated with the medical
surveys.
1.
Environmental Assessment.
Work done under this task proposal has either no environmental impact or has
impacts similar to those described in and covered by BNL's Environmental Impact
Statement
1.
(ERDA 1540).
Other.
Capital Equipment Requirements for FY 1983.
A thyroid scanning system for combined x-ray fluorescence and radionuclide
imaging studies is necessary
to identify nodules of interest.
The system employs
a large germanium detector (6 cm diameter, 2 cm thick) in a vertical mount;
the
isotope-exciting source is 170Tm(ti, = 134d; 51, 52 + 59 keV x rays) which is pro-
duced and available at BNL in high purity and in large amounts.
The system uges
HA eR 1S