- wo. . 401720 tee ath JRUGT TERRITCRY > COR FICh 4 SA ate 1 AUG. S Of THE Ts4t OOF bitoH PEO RATA INS PACED EO St Atlas COMM GSTS BR ARNE IGG ait dhe Pott eabooty 1979 Mrs. Ruth G. Van Cleve Director Office of Territorial Affairs Department of the Interior Washington, Dear Mrs. D.C. 20240 BEST COPY AVAILABLE Van Cleve: This is in reply to your letter of July 20, 1979, regarding a meeting with Dr. Bruce Wachholz, Dr. Hugh Pratt, Mr. George Milner, and Mr. John GeYoung, about the proposed medical survey of the people of Likiep Atoll. I will answer your questions as presented. We have found nothing to indicate that files containing materials related to Rongelap and Utirik exposed populations have been destroyed, but the Attorney General will be meeting with Anton DeBrum in mid-August, at which time additional information will be gathered and forwarded to your office. Our information indicates the most comprehensive reports on medical information regarding the exposed Rongelap and Utirik people are contained in those which were prepared annually by the Brookhaven National Laboratory, which is in Upton, New York. The Bureau of Health Services has copies of these reports dating back to 1955. The latest report, however, is for calendar year 1975, which reviews the twenty-year medical findings of the people of Rongelap and Utirik. The Brookhaven National Laboratory has not sent us reports for 1976, 1977 and 1978. Regarding the statement made by Mr. Anton DeBrum that there have been a Significant number of medical referrals to Guam Naval Hospital, Tripler Army Hospital, and a special clinic in Honolulu, of people of the Northern Marshalls for thyroid abnormalities and cancer, attached is a record of all thyroid cases which have been discharged from the Majuro Hospital over a five-year period, from 1973 to 1977. The record does reflect an increase in the number of cases from two to four between 1974 and 1975, and e further increase in 1977 to six cases. However, the increase may not be statistically significant because in any community with a small population, as is the case with most groups of isjJands in the Trust Territory, rates of diseases which are rare and chronic, such as thyroid abnormalities, often fluctuate from year to year. In order to get a more accurate indication on this type of disease, five-year data is usually used for calculations in order to obtain more reliable information. gums 501 508